


Zirca's Sleeping Tiger

by Mugiwara_N0_Luffy



Series: Zirca OC's! [1]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series)
Genre: Angst, Drug Use, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Gen, Revenge
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-17
Updated: 2021-01-27
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:16:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 6
Words: 38,923
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24237907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mugiwara_N0_Luffy/pseuds/Mugiwara_N0_Luffy
Summary: Zirca is a ruthless region in the world of Pokemon. Some of its people live in ignorance and while others live in reluctant acceptance.Isaiah Tua tried his best to live with the darkness that exists in the region. He strived to look out for his friends and be a positive force to those around him. Even with a darkness of his own lingering in his heart.But sometimes the world looks for ways to push you. And when it pushes too hard, the Zirca region may not be ready for when Isaiah pushes back.
Series: Zirca OC's! [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2156466
Comments: 5
Kudos: 22





	1. Chapter 1

_This kid isn't half bad..._

Yorra felt her heart race. Sweat beaded down her cheek, but she did well to hide the exasperation she felt. She could see that Vicious, her Malamar partner, heaved for breath as it stared down her opponent's Scizor. A truly bad match up, as far as typing went. Yorra could quickly shift the fight in her favor by switching to Buttons, her strongest and oldest partner Incineroar.

_I'm a gym leader. I can't sweat the details that quickly._

Yorra put on the most sultry smile she could manage. "What's wrong, little boy? You're the one with the advantage here. At least try and make it to my final pokemon!"

_Don't show any weakness. I've got to establish myself as someone not to be fucked with. Well, in a pokemon battle at least._

Vicious sent what could only be a doubtful glance in her direction. She hated how it could instantly pick up on her bullshit. Thankfully, the hopeful trainer wasn't so wise to her act.

"Damn it… come on, Scizor! X-Scissor!" The trainer ordered. The pokemon in question flapped its insect wings as it charged forward, its pincers glowing with energy.

 _Vicious can't take a hit like that. Okay, okay… wait… wait…_ "Dodge, Vicious!"

'Mao~!" Vicious used its tendrils to lift itself in the air, avoiding Scizor's charge for the moment.

"Don't let it get away!" Scizor obeyed its master, kicking off the ground and attempting to follow Vicious in the air.

"Vicious! Use Wrap!" Yorra had called that out in a panic, even if she masked it behind a confident facade. _Shit! That's a normal type move!_ Vicious wrapped its tentacles around the Scizor. And while it didn't do any real damage, Yorra felt some relief to see that it kept the steel-bug type from getting X-Scissor to connect. Still, the Scizor didn't look to be in any sort of trouble as it fought against Vicious' grip.

"Break out of it, Scizor!"

"SCI~ZOR!" Vicious was clearly struggling to hold on. Yorra bit the inside of her mouth as she tried to think up a quick follow up. _Relax, Yorra! Don't overthink it! He's locked close so he can't do too many moves, but…_

Reigning in her anxiety, Yorra grinned ear to ear. "Vicious! Hypnosis!"

"MAO~!" Vicious's eyes became wide as an owl's as they turned a light hue of pink. A wave of psychic energy washed over Scizor, and with no way to avoid the disabling move.

"N-No! Scizor!" The trainer grit his teeth as Scizor slouched over, fading into sleep. Vicious set the Scizor down gently as to not wake it as the two landed on the ground.

"Now, Vicious! Foul Play!" A shroud of darkness surrounded Vicious, barrelling forward and smashing head on into Scizor. Vicious carried it across the battlefield and smashed it into the concrete, dust pluming around them. Yorra clenched her jaw as she waited for the dust to clear, hoping for it to be over. And to her relief, Vicious stood proudly over its fallen foe, Scizor's eyes swirling as it lay unconscious.

"Scizor is no longer able to battle! The victory goes to Gym Leader Yorra!" The referee announced, waving a green flag in her direction.

 _Thank Arceus._ Yorra wiped the building sweat on her brow, exaggerating the movement to make it look like she was only brushing her bangs aside. "Sorry, kid. Looks like you just couldn't last with me." She put a hand on her hip, looking down her nose at the trainer. "Next time, maybe work on your stamina, kay~?"

"Mao…" Vicious visibly rolled its eyes as it hobbled back to her.

"Shut up." She hissed through knit teeth, keeping up her smile as she recalled Vicious back to its pokeball.

"Darn it… you're so strong…" The trainer walked over to meet her, a defeated shadow hanging over his face. "I'll… I'll come back once I've trained enough."

"Don't get too down on yourself. I tend to push a lot of guys past their limit." Yorra giggled, walking up and sizing him up. Upon closer inspection, he was cute, albeit a bit younger than her. _Probably a virgin, too._

"Maybe, if you can make it to my last pokemon next time…" Yorra brought his chin up with the tip of her right index finger. "I'll have a special post-battle 'training' for you."

Yorra licked her lips, watching his face break out in a furious blush. "B-Bu-uh…"

 _Yep. Definitely a virgin._ How many trainers could go so long without getting a single bit of ass? Yorra couldn't understand what made them such herbivores when approaching women.

Normally, she would take a kid like this into the back and have her way immediately. She had half a mind to do so.

But she had plans to keep.

"Until next time, kid~." Yorra traced the line of his jaw with her fingers, walking past him while allowing her hips to sway back and forth in a way she knew would leave any guy staring at her voluptuous ass. She headed for the locker rooms, grabbing a towel from the referee as he raced to bring her one. "Ugh. I just had~ to have a match right before the meet up."

Yorra fished her phone from her satchel, scanning through her texts.

_Yorra: I have a match. But you should def meet me after you get in._

_Sai: Sure. Try not to work the 'seductive/sultry' angle too hard, kay? Kid doesn't need a boner during the match._

_Yorra: Afraid I'll hook up right before we meet up?_

_Sai: Duh. Last time you spent over an hour with a guy -_-_

_Yorra: Shut up, I won't. And it was my first match after becoming Gym Leader!_

_Yorra: It was a special occasion!_

_Sai: Whatever you say. Good luck and cheering you on!_

Yorra smiled as she read through the last of her conversation. _I wish he'd been there to see it._ Yorra sighed, shaking the thought aside. She knew he was going to be busy until that night.

She just would have liked an audience actually there to cheer her on. One that was more than just her number of 'admirers' looking for her 'special training' afterward.

Yorra didn't dwell on it, though. She quickly typed up a message:

_Yorra: I'm done. I'm ready to pick you up when-_

"Boo!"

Yorra almost jumped out of her skin when she heard a whisper in her ear. That became difficult as she was swooped off her feet by a pair of large and muscular arms that wrapped around her waist.

"H-Hey! Who the fu-" Yorra snapped her head back with a hiss, but blinked when she came face to face with her 'captor'. "Sai?"

"Sup?" His low octave voice rumbled, a toothy grin meeting her eyes.

Isaiah Tua, who she more affectionately called Sai. Her longtime friend from highschool until this day. He was large, larger than most people she'd met. Probably stood over six foot five. The number always seemed to jump around. He had dark skin and short cut curly hair with a high fade. He was initially from Alola before moving to Yorra's neck of the woods. He wore a maroon full-zip hoodie with his favorite past League Champions, Usammed Kali bolded in black letters on his chest. He wore a black polyester-cotton pair of mid-knee shorts and all black, low sneakers.

Yorra shook off her surprise, pursing her lips as she slapped his shoulders. "Thanks for scaring me, dick!" Yorra slapped his shoulder before grinning, leaning forward and wrapping her arms tightly around his neck for a hug. "What are you doing here so soon?! I thought you weren't getting in until around this time!"

"I wanted to surprise you!" Isaiah laughed as he set her down, an ever present grin on his lips. "I felt bad I couldn't make it back for your first ever gym battle last month, so I wanted to make sure I made it this time."

Yorra felt her heart leap. "You saw me battle?"

"Sure did! You looked slick as hell out there." Isaiah slapped her shoulder gently before giving a knowing wink. "That little last bit of acting was real good, too. You had that guy really thinkin' you weren't sweatin' much."

"Ugh, you have no idea," Yorra let out an exaggerated groan. She knew that if he watched, Isaiah would have seen just as easily as Vicious that she was bullshitting. "I was trying to play up being a Gym Leader, but I really shouldn't have pushed it too much. Vicious was _not_ happy."

"Well, that octopus likes to fight anyway. He probably didn't mind." Isaiah shrugged before nudging her side. "Still, that last second Hypnosis? Real magic right there."

"Heh, thanks. I had to make the best of that situation." Yorra tried to hide her smile as she sheepishly rubbed her neck.

_He really came. Heh. This feels nice._

Yorra never let anyone know how much she longed for a personal audience. One filled with people she really cared about. Unfortunately, she could count on two hands who would actually make up that crowd. But Isaiah was number one on that list.

Still, she couldn't let a joke slip by.

"You know…" Yorra let a mischievous smirk play on her lips. "I was a little surprised but a little _excited_ when you picked me up. I thought it might have been one of my usual boys trying to make a move."

"Alright, calm down little harlot." Isaiah's eyes rolled in amusement, bumping her shoulder with his fist. "Now let's go. Me and you got a date with some booze and some billiards!"

"Smacking some balls around? One of my _favorite_ pastimes."

"Chill, chill!" Isaiah laughed, shaking his head. "Oh, but before that. Where's my favorite cat?"

"Right. You can't see me without seeing him." Yorra giggled, drawing Buttons ball from her leg strap and releasing him.

"Growg!" Buttons let out a short howl, stretching its arms out before looking at Isaiah. His pupils dilated like he was looking at food, and he assumed a seated position like a common house cat.

"There's my big boy! Come here!" Isaiah spread his arms out, and Buttons was quick to leap into them. Of course, being large individuals of similar size, Buttons and Isaiah tumbled over as the dark-fire type glomped him. Buttons let out what could only be described as a low, rumbling pur as he nuzzled into Isaiah's chest. One thing that the cat seemed to like about Isaiah was that he was one of the few individuals of similar size to him.

 _Being big seems nice._ Yorra thought, shaking her head as she watched the two get reacquainted. _Heh… big._ "I swear, he's happier to see you than he is seeing me."

"Ah that's just because I'm not always around." Isaiah sat up, rubbing the top of Buttons' head. "You wanna see Luga*? You miss your buddy?"

Buttons reacted immediately, head raising high before immediately backing off of Isaiah. The Alolan native drew a poke'ball from his belt, releasing it. A Swampert erupted from the ball, letting out a long growl as it stretched. "Swamper~!"

"Growg!" Buttons hopped in front of Luga, the ground-water type sitting up in attention. It got on all fours, and the two stuck their butts up and wagged their tails like happy dogs, hopping around one another while 'gently' pushing against the other's shoulders in a playful fashion.

"See, he's more happy to see Luga than me." Isaiah stood up from the ground, using Yorra's shoulder to pull himself up. She almost fell over due to the obvious size difference. "We'll go to Morgan's Saloon. They still let pokemon play games there, right?"

"Yup. You better be careful, though. Me and Buttons have been working on our 8 ball game since you've been gone." Yorra stuck her chin up proudly.

"I hope so. Last time me and Luga gave you guys a bit of beatin' if I remember right." Isaiah snickered, gently poking her waist with fake punches.

"I'd _hardly_ call it a beating. You got lucky," she scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "We'll make you eat your words this time."

"We'll see about that. Alright, come on, you two. Time to go." Yorra held up her ball and recalled Buttons as Isaiah did the same with Luga.

"So, are we taking your car?" They headed out of the locker room, Yorra only grabbing a few things she needed before they left.

"Yup. Did you come in yours?"

"No. I still have Buttons bring me by skateboard." Yorra shrugged.

"You still do that? You know that's dangerous. Especially if he spotted some Pikachu roaming around. Might send your ass flying." Isaiah looked down with a morsel of concern in his face.

"Eh, it's fine. I've done it a thousand times at this point. If I eat shit, I eat shit." Yorra shrugged carelessly. "I doubt it'll be that bad. I bet it's more dangerous for you to drive, anyways."

"Eh. Maybe." They soon walked through the front gym doors, a cold night biting Yorra's exposed legs and easily chilling her body through her thin clothes.

"Ugh. It's been so cold lately…" She shivered, rubbing her arms. She looked at Isaiah from the side, eyeing his hoodie before batting her eyes up at him. "You know… that hoodie looks nice and warm…"

"Yup. That's why I got it. Well, that and it looks nice." Isaiah's shit eating grin was enough to dash her hopes of getting it. Yorra made sure to elbow his side for the snide look, but he took it with a laugh.

"U-Um… Yorra?"

Yorra came to a stop, looking over her shoulder at the shaky voice. She raised a brow when she saw a young man approach. If she remembered correctly, he was a trainer who had challenged her some weeks ago. Not her first match.

He was a cute young man, a little older than the boy she just battled. But she hated his face. It was too similar to _him._

Their pokemon battle was short, and Yorra had been relentless. Not cruel, of course, as she would never be cruel to a trainer's pokemon. Though she certainly gave him some of her most scathing remarks.

"What?" Yorra asked, her voice short tempered as she rested a hand on her hip. Isaiah stepped up next to her, and she tried not to look at him. She could feel his critical gaze drilling into her from the side.

"I-I don't know if you remember me, b-but a few weeks ago, I-"

"I do. Your pokemon game was weak." Yorra didn't bother to hold back.

"I know… I know." He answered, shifting in place nervously. "You really crushed me… but as much as it sucked, I thought… well, you were just amazing. Your words stung, but I got it. You're relentless because that's how you got strong, right? I thought that was… so cool."

Yorra raised a brow, now realizing what this kid was trying to do. _Of course._ Her suspicions were confirmed when he brought a rose out from behind his back. How many guys had done the same thing?

"I just… wanted to see if you might consider… maybe going out with me sometime?"

Yorra's eyes blurred. Again, she was reminded of that man. Even the way he spoke, it was almost the same as when they first met. And it made her _sick._

"Oh, that's so sweet of you~." Yorra reached out and took the rose, a sickly sweet smile on her lips.

"Yory…" Isaiah's voice nearly drew her out of her darkened state. But her eyes were still locked on the man.

"You know, I have plans with my friend right now, but tell you what?" Yorra let her hand snake inside of her satchel, fishing for a certain DVD. "How about you take this-"

"Sorry, buddy!" Yorra stiffened when she felt Isaiah wrap his large arm around her back, gently grabbing her forearm and keeping it in the bag. She looked up at him in irritation, but Isaiah was all smiles. "You seem like a good kid, but unfortunately Yory here is taken."

"Sai…" She ground out, but he continued to ignore her. Still, she was loathe to admit that his gentle grasp on her was helping the red she saw fade. She silently relented, though was too stubborn to put on a pleased act alongside him.

"Oh..? Oh!" She heard the annoying kid's voice, and clearly he was buying Isaiah's act. "I-I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to… I wasn-"

"It's no problem, dude. Yory here's always been a little popular with the fellas," Isaiah gave her side a gentle squeeze for emphasis. "Now, if you'll excuse us…"

"R-Right! S-Sorry!" Yorra finally drew her gaze up, watching the guy run off awkwardly. Isaiah continued to smile as they watched him go.

Once he was far enough, Isaiah released her, fixing Yorra with a scolding gaze. _I was actually comfortable-_ "What was that?"

"What was what?" Yorra pushed her bangs back, meeting his gaze with an innocent expression.

"You know **exactly** what I'm talking about. You were gonna give that kid one of your little 'video' rejections," Isaiah huffed, stuffing his hands into his hoodie pockets. "A simple 'no' will work, Yory! No need to break the kid's heart that brutally!"

 _Right. He knows about those._ Yorra fought the faint blush that tried to build up. She forgot that she left a video she was editing up one day on her laptop, and Isaiah saw it. One of the last people she ever wanted to see. It certainly made for an awkward day afterward.

"It gets the point across." Yorra rolled her eyes, drawing her gaze away from him. "Besides, he'll get to enjoy a little show along with it."

"You really gotta stop with that. Stop torturing yourself. And stop torturing others because they remind you of-" Isaiah stopped, clenching his jaw as he shook his head. "Whatever. Let's just go already."

Yorra watched him walk ahead of her without another word. And that's when the pit of guilt started to bury in her gut. _Shit. What am I doing?_ Yorra realized that her little stunt suddenly brought down the mood. Things had been all fun as usual. But one little whiff of some thirsty loser, and she almost goes full evil on some poor sap.

Yorra had some… _mean_ tendencies, as she liked to call it. And most of her friends would often just try to overlook it. But Isaiah was one of the few that would hold her accountable. She didn't exactly hate having someone like that around.

_Well maybe he shouldn't have gone out of town so often lately…_

Yorra shook her head, realizing she had selfishly tried to make it out to be his fault. But she knew the truth. She fought the snide remarks building in her head, catching up to Isaiah as he opened his car up for her.

They both got in, quiet as mice. Yorra sent an apologetic glance his way, but he was clearly still upset, eyes focused on driving. Probably a good thing, but the resting scowl wasn't encouraging. The ride remained silent for the first minute, and Yorra could feel her guilt mounting. _Ugh. I gotta fix this._

She looked around, eyes landing on the aux cord hanging from the stereo system. An idea popped in her head and Yorra smiled. "I'll take the aux."

"No, you-" Yorra snatched it before he could protest.

"Focus on driving. It's shotguns job to handle the music." Yorra gave a devious smirk.

"Eh. Fine…" Isaiah returned his gaze to the road, making a clear show of his annoyance.

Yorra wiggled her shoulders victoriously, scanning through her phone. _Now, what to bring the mood up with?_ Her and Isaiah had very little in common as far as music taste went. But they _did_ have a few shared gems. A single song name displayed for her, and she knew immediately that it was perfect.

The starting drum beat was all it took for Isaiah to recognize the song. "Yory, no…"

"What's that? Song's too loud." Yorra made a point to turn up the volume.

" _I wanna be~the very best! That no one ever was!"_

Yorra drummed the air to the acoustics, staring at Isaiah from the side all while doing so. Isaiah pursed his lips as his fingers tapped against the wheel. He was doing all he could to resist her little show.

" _To catch them is my real test, to train them is my cause~"_

Yorra began to mouth the lyrics, even adding a little headbang to each beat.

" _I will travel across the land, searching far and wide~! Each pokemon, to understand. The power that's inside!"_

Isaiah briefly met her eyes when Yorra grabbed his sleeve, swaying her body back and forth to make sure he was paying attention.

" _Pokemon! Gotta catch 'em all~! It's you and me~! I know it's my destiny!"_

Yorra didn't miss the fact that his Isaiah's finger tapping was now matching the rhythm of the song.

" _Pokemon! Oh~ you're my best friend, in a world we must defend~!"_

" _Pokemon!"_ Yorra smiled, hearing Isaiah's voice as he finally gave in, the two now fulling singing along. _"Gotta catch 'em all~! A heart so true, our courage will pull us through! You teach me and I'll teach you… PO-KE-MON~!"_

" _Gotta catch 'em all, gotta catch-"_ Isaiah stopped the song by pressing pause on the stereo. He let out a loud sigh, shaking his head. Yorra merely stared up at him, a triumphant smile on her lips.

"That was cheating." He said, stroking his jaw as he tried to fight against the grin that wanted to take shape.

"And? It worked, didn't it?" Yorra shrugged with a smug smile. Isaiah remained quiet, lips curling in as he tried to resist. But she knew the game was won.

"I'm still mad at you."

"That's fine. So, we playing the rest?"

"... Yeah. Go ahead."

Yorra let the song play, and Isaiah didn't bother to fight it this time as they sang the song together like they were dumb kids again.

* * *

"So, what are we betting on this game?"

"You can't do that on the last few shots!" Isaiah complained.

"You're just saying that because you're losing~." Yorra stuck her tongue out. "I told you me and Buttons have been practicing."

"I was goin' easy early. Wanted to make sure you really were ready for this game." was his excuse. Truth was, Isaiah was only behind by two unsunk cue balls, but Yorra had been on fire. And the 8 ball was in her sights.

"Well, how about this. If I miss this last shot, we'll count it as your win. Will that make a bet fairer?" Yorra leaned on her pool stick as she watched him.

Isaiah looked at the pool table. Yorra could see why it would look like a tempting offer. The shot wasn't easy for her to make because of its awkward angle. "What are we betting?"

"The next round of drinks."

Isaiah blew air through his lips like a motor boat. They were both definitely a little buzzed at this point, but not totally drunk. "Alright. I'll get the next round if you get it. You miss, you get it."

"Perfect~!" Yorra let her pearly whites shine as she leaned over the table taking aim. It was indeed a tough shot, _but_ what she hadn't told Isaiah was that she had been practicing this kind of angle now and again. And she was good at hitting it.

She felt pretty proud of herself when she knocked it back, watching it bounce off the far corner before rolling smoothly into the left-center pocket.

"Dah! Son of a…" Isaiah grumbled in defeat but smiled. "Alright, you earned that one. I got the next round."

"Thank you very much~!" Yorra winked at him, Buttons roaring triumphantly close behind her. Luga didn't follow his master, pressing his head against Buttons' chest and initiating a play fight. Yorra giggled as she watched them, the two going into what could only be described as a live wrestling match. "Sai, come back. They're at it again!" she waved a hand, sending a passing glance over her shoulder.

"Hey, you bumped me!" Yorra's neck stiffened. By the bar, some drunk a shoulder below Isaiah pushed at his chest. Isaiah looked like he was controlling himself well. But she could see the gleam of anger in his eyes and his clenched jaw. Any harder squeeze around their bottles and he might have broken them in his hands.

_Shit._

Yorra strutted calmly to the bar, knowing she didn't have much time to act before all hell would break loose.

"Sir, I'm real sorry about that. Now if you'll excuse me…" To his credit, Isaiah was trying to escape the drunk's attempt at a fight. But the drunk seemed to have a death wish, gripping his hoodie to keep him from leaving.

"I-I'm not done with you! I'm tired of-of big guys pushin' me around…" Yorra saw the way Isaiah looked down at the man's arm and for a second, she thought he might snatch it up and break it in half.

"Now, _sir…"_

"Babe! You're taking forever!" Yorra gently pushed her way between him and the drunk, eyes focused on Isaiah.

"Hey, get ouUUU~!"

While simultaneously gripping the man's balls in a vice grip. Isaiah clenched his jaw, looking at the drunk like what pain he was going through wasn't enough. Yorra made sure to gently grip his wrist, all while smiling. "Come on, Sai. Let's go enjoy our drinks!"

"Y-y-yo…" The man squeaked out. He choked when Yorra gave his jewels one last firm twist before letting him fall to the ground.

She spared a pitying look back and feigned a sympathetic gaze. "Oh, no! Looks like he's too drunk! Bartender, can you call him a cab?"

"Heh, sure." The bartender hid a smile, pulling out a phone to make the call.

"Come on, Sai. He'll be fine." Yorra pulled him away, her large friend staring down with a conflicted expression. But he allowed her to drag him away back to their pool table. As expected, both Buttons and Luga had been watching tentatively, her Incineroar letting out a low growl. "Down, boy."

Buttons took a moment to calm down but did so. Though he kept a close eye on the drunk as he got up.

"You didn't have to do that." Isaiah sounded annoyed, but Yorra wasn't bothered.

"I didn't want our night getting ruined." Yorra shrugged, taking her drink from his hand. "Thanks."

Isaiah tapped the side of his bottle, his eyelids pressing together tightly. "Sorry. Guess I did almost ruin it."

"Don't be. It wouldn't have been your fault." Yorra tried to brush it off, watching him with concern.

"Maybe. But the moment he touched me, I wanted to smash my bottle across his head." Isaiah took a small sip from his beer, shame now coloring his face. "Guess I really haven't changed."

Yorra chewed on the inside of her cheek. There was a reason they had connected so well in high school. They were both outcasts. People who were deemed as 'troublesome' by the other kids. Yorra had gotten the reputation of man eater rather quickly, while Isaiah's alienation came a little later. He had a good deal of friends.

Until he beat several bullies in a rather vicious manner.

Isaiah was a kind soul. Kinder than most people she had ever met. And far more accepting of her wilder tendencies than most others ever would. That is, unless they were trying to get in her pants of course.

But Isaiah had a violent side. Though not without provocation. He would always mind his own business. But if someone crossed him? Isaiah didn't need his pokemon to fight his battles. He hurt people. Hurt them in ways that would make sure they would make them think twice about ever starting a fight with someone again.

This never came out against people Isaiah cared about, no matter how angry he got in an argument. But if he didn't know someone, and they tried to act like a tough guy, he'd show them that they were anything _but._

"That's not true. You held back pretty well back there." Yorra tried to make him feel better, nudging his side. "Old you wouldn't have thought twice about it."

"I'm aware." Isaiah let out a strained chuckle, putting on a poor excuse for a smile. "Still… Another shove and that guy would have been eating the bar."

"Don't think about it. It didn't happen." Yorra took a swig from her beer before smiling. "We're fine. And we get to drink our beers in peace."

"Yeah…" Isaiah nodded, taking another drink. With a satisfied breath, he gave a more genuine smile. "Thanks for steppin' in. You mighta kept a man from gettin' maimed tonight."

"Yeah, well, let's hope he wasn't planning on kids." Yorra smirked, the two sending a glance back at the staggering drunk as he was helped out by the bartender's Machoke. They both laughed, shaking the thought off. Luga pressed his snout against Isaiah's shoulder,his trainer making sure to stroke his head in reassurance.

"Well, all's well that ends well." Isaiah shrugged before turning back to the pool table. "Now let's get goin'! I can't let you take a win and not pay you back!"

"Sorry, but my ball smacking skills are well above yours."

"Arceus, that's terrible." The two laughed, and carried on with their night.

* * *

"I-I'm tellin' you, that last shot was cheatin'!"

"No~! You're just a-just a sore loser!"

Yorra and Isaiah tossed slurred words back and forth as Buttons carried Isaiah and Luga let Yorra ride on his back. The two had gotten incredibly drunk over the course of the night, barely arriving home by two in the morning once the bartender cut them off. Thankfully he had a sense to call them a Poke Lyft.

"M-Man~! I always forget how… how nice your place is…" Isaiah puckered his lips as he looked at her house.

"Right? Gym leader benefits~!" Yorra did the jazz hands, sticking her tongue out.

"Ah, shaddap. It's not that nice." Isaiah blew a raspberry at her. Buttons pushed the door open with his foot, bringing Isaiah to the couch and laying him there with Luga setting Yorra right next to him. "When… When my training is done and I am an… official Poke'Fire Fighter, my place will be bigger."

"No way~! You guys don't make _that much!_ " Yorra scoffed, digging her head back into the couch. "Besides, once I'm a doctor, I'll make this _three_ times bigger!"

"Eh… that's not fair…" Isaiah clicked his tongue pettily.

"Heheh…" Yorra grinned at her little victory before the two went into a short silence. Buttons had turned on the TV, though he and Luga were laid out on the ground, falling asleep. She wasn't sure if it was her drunken state or not, but she felt her stomach sink as she asked him a question.

"So… So how long are you gonna be in town?"

"Me? Just… just a few days." Isaiah smacked his lips, looking down at her with sad eyes. "Sorry… sorry, might be awhile before I'm back too…"

"Wha~t? I thought you'd… you'd be back at the end of each month?!" Yorra twisted around so that she was on her knees, a hand gripping at his terry cloth hoodie. "H-How long?"

"Just… Just a few months… they said that… this time, I gotta stay for the long haul…" Isaiah admitted, biting his bottom lip. "S-Sorry, Yory, it-it's the final stretch. Just-Just a few more months and I'm back…"

"No~! That's too long!" Yorra pounded his chest weakly, sobbing like the drunken fool she currently was. "I dun-don't wanna be alone that long!"

"He-Hey, hey!" Isaiah fumbled his arms around, trying to seize control of her arms. "It's okay! Just… Just a few more months and then I'm back for good! Don't be sad, come on. You'll make me… make me sad." He was already sniffling despite his words.

"You're makin' me sad! It's not fair!" Yorra pounded his chest one last time before leaning her head into it. "It's not fair… asshole…"

"I'm sorry… I'm sorry…" Isaiah wrapped his large arms around her back, taking her into a gentle embrace despite his drunken state. "I'll be back… I'll be back…"

"Whatever…" Yorra sniffed, trying to push off of him. As she looked up at his face, she soon realized he had fallen asleep. "You big doofus…"

She tried to push off the couch to get off him, but had trouble finding a good spot to get up. She put her hands past his head and made an attempt to get up. As she miserably failed to escape, she glared at Isaiah and was tempted to shake him awake. But as she stared down at her much taller friend, she found his demeanor disarming her.

 _He looks… so peaceful..._ She sighed in resignation. _You dick…_ Yorra sank back into his chest, nuzzling her face into it. _You get a pass this time… but these titties are mine._ She took some strange revenge by making a pillow out of his pecs, finding herself quite comfortable. _So that's why guys like this, huh..?_

It wasn't long before Yorra fell asleep, still mounted on top of Isaiah with her right cheek smushed against his chest. She was well past asleep by the time Isaiah stirred somewhat and looked down at her. He affectionately brushed a strand of hair out of her face, taking a moment to smile at her drunken yet adorable state before falling back asleep himself.

**The End**


	2. Broken

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Isaiah took on the Gym leaders of Zirca and prevailed against all. All except the final leader, his best friend Yorra. He expects to have a competitive but fun match with his old friend. But what he gets is anything but, and threatens their friendship.

Broken

Jules Jagger had met Isaiah through Yorra. She was honestly expecting him to just be another one of her Yorra’s flings, but sometimes life had its fair share of surprises. Isaiah had turned out to be a genuinely good guy despite his lethal temper. He was one of the very few men in Yorra’s life that didn’t have any vulgar intentions or expectations, and he made no moves on either girls. Hell, Jules had found herself becoming quick friends with him. They worked out together, spent days hanging out with Yorra and some days without her. Jules was ecstatic that out of all the men they knew, he was one that had truly made an impression and stayed.

“Sup Jules!” The Electric type trainer drew her distracted gaze from her phone, giving a sharp toothed smile when she saw the large Alolan native. 

“Isa! Good to see you!” Jules stood from her seat to meet him, the two having arranged to meet at a local restaurant. They clasped hands and gave each other a quick hug. 

“Hey, watch the teeth! You’re gonna poke an eye out with those things.” Isaiah teased, Jules scoffing and slugging him in the shoulder. “Ow!”

“These fangs will do more than poke your eye out, jerk.” Jules laughed, moving back to her seat.

“Shit, your punch alone is scary enough. Don’t even need those teeth.” Isaiah made a dramatic show of nursing the spot she hit. “Besides, I think biting guys is more your sis’s schstik.” 

Jules snorted. “She does like to mark those poor dudes.”

“Guess that’s just the price they pay.” Isaiah laughed, both taking a seat at the booth. “It’s been a while, I’m happy to see you! How’s your training going?”

“Me? I’ve been great! Still kickin’ around young hopefuls who think they can take me. I’m gettin’ stronger every day!” Jules raised her right arm and flexed her toned muscles proudly. “I’ll probably be able to take you on soon!”

“Really, now? Maybe you will,” Isaiah let out a hum, stroking his chin as a teasing smile edged on his lips. “But maybe keep training a little longer… I’d hate to have to wipe the floor with you ‘cause you weren’t ready.” 

“Oh, shove off,” Jules laughed. Jules’ smile faded for a brief moment, but she did her best to play it off. “Still though… you really have been takin’ names lately, huh? Your battle with Kairo was a real nail biter!”

“Thanks. She was better than I thought, to be honest. I almost think she was prepared for Luga too.” Isaiah let out a breath, eyes flashing at the memory. “I think I nearly lost my shit when I saw her Entei.”

“Yeah, I remember your face on TV.” Jules snickered, but slowly mellowed out. “But you pulled through and got the win.”

“It hasn’t been easy. Well, except against your brother. Speaking of, I’ve been meaning to ask about that.” Isaiah bit the inside of his cheek, tapping the table lightly. “Your bro’s a tough as hell gym leader. Asshole that he is...”

“You just say that ‘cause he wants to smash you,” Isaiah made a choked sound at the mere mention of it.

“Don’t remind me. He tried to make an offer after the battle, sayin’ shit like ‘if that wasn’t satisfactory, I have other ways of doing so’.” Isaiah groaned. “Man doesn’t know how to keep it in his pants.”

“He likes a challenge, I guess.” Jules half joked. 

“That aside… what was going on with him? It was like he barely tried. And I know Didier wouldn’t throw a match just to flirt. I’m not too proud to say that I was expecting him to cause me a lot of problems. But it was like he was going through the motions.”

Jules remembered the battle well. She was dumbfounded to see Didier’s lackluster performance. It was so disappointing that Jules had to go and ask after all was said and done.

Didier’s answer only brought further confusion… and some fear. 

_ “True, I could have attempted to crush him myself. But I couldn’t help but wonder… what’s his face going to look like when Yorra breaks his heart… and his pokemon?”  _

Jules felt a shiver run down her spine after hearing the morbid fascination in her brother’s voice. Jules normally wouldn’t suspect Yorra to do that to a friend, especially Isaiah. But Didier knew how to put a little bit of fear into her.

“Y-You got me. Didier just does weird stuff to look cool sometimes.” Jules tried to play it off, not wanting to shine her brother in any worse light than Isaiah already held him in.

“If you say so. It was pretty disappointing to be honest. I spent months doing hellish training for my team. Kinda wanted to thrash him in a real battle.” Isaiah huffed out a breath as a waitress brought them water. “Thanks. Can I get an iced tea?”

“I’m good.” The waitress nodded, Jules watching her go as she waited to continue. “Well, my bro aside, we were all shocked when you told us you were gonna make the gym challenge at all. I mean, you practically decided outta nowhere to try. What happened to being a firefighter? You never really told us.”

“What can I say? I guess I just found some motivation for it.” Isaiah shrugged, his shoulders stiffening a mite as he crossed his arms. “Just... somethin’ I gotta do. You know?”

“I guess…” Jules answered with some strain. She had been expecting the roundabout answer, as it had been the same one he gave her and Yorra months before when he made his intentions to challenge the gym leaders known. Both times it felt like he was holding something back. The way his voice trailed off and his posture stiffened. There was something he was clearly hiding.

“Well, if you ever feel like telling us the  _ real  _ reason you suddenly took up training, we’ll be here.” Jules decided to play her hand, giving him a knowing smile as she sipped from her water.

“Guess there really is no fooling you, huh?” Isaiah let out a genuine laugh, eyes trailing down to their table. His expression became distant and his lips tightened into a thin line. “Well… I’ll let you and Yorry know soon enough. But not ‘til after the battle.”

_ After? Shit…  _ Jules felt a pang in her stomach, a frown spreading across her lips. “Right… about that…”

Isaiah drew his gaze up to Jules, eyebrow cocking. “What?”

“So… I’ve been thinkin’...” Jules scratched her cheek, eyes trailing to the side as she tried her best to sound convincing. “Maybe you should… I dunno…  _ not  _ battle Yorra?”

“What?” he said, confusion further plastered on his face. “Why wouldn’t I? I’ve come so far Jules. I beat her, I can fight the Elite 4.”

“Yeah, true… but…” Jules coughed into her hand, looking back at Isaiah with some nervousness. “We both know how Yorra can be when she battles… especially when she’s battling someone she sees as a threat.”

Yorra was one of the strongest trainers in Zirca. Some would also call her the  _ dirtiest  _ among the gym leaders. She would use underhanded tactics to make her opponents submit, sometimes even maiming to her opponent’s pokemon. It typically would have ruined her reputation, but Yorra had…  _ ways  _ of making it up to most trainers.

But the same wouldn’t work for Isaiah.

“Yeah, I’m aware. But come on, Jules. You really think Yorry’s gonna do that with me?” Isaiah leaned back in his booth, looking confident. “Yorry’s cruel sometimes, but only cruel to people she doesn’t know. I doubt that’s somethin i gotta worry about.”

“You never know in the heat of battle, though…” Jules rubbed her neck. “I’m not tryin’ to doubt Yorra or anything, but I just think it’s better to be safe than sorry.”

“Look, it’s not a big deal.” Isaiah waved a hand in front of him, smiling. “I think we’re just gonna have a regular battle. I don’t think she’ll hold back but I don’t think she’ll cross the line either.”

“... Maybe…” Jules wasn’t so sure. Yorra had been acting strange since Isaiah announced he would be taking on the gym leaders. And it only seemed to worsen with every win that Isaiah got. Like she was dreading the closer Isaiah got to their battle. “Have you talked to her lately?”

“Not really. I figured I’d get the chance to chat with her when I got back into town.” Isaiah admitted, rubbing his chin hairs. “She was pretty upset when I said I was gonna do the gym challenge, but she still wished me luck. I don’t think it’ll be a big deal.” 

“I… I hope so.” Jules sighed, leaning her elbows forward on the table. “Just… be careful, alright?”

“You sound pretty concerned. Is that the reason you wanted to meet?” Isaiah’s brow furrowed, crossing his arms. “Has she said anything to you?”

“Not really… just a feelin’, you know?” Jules might have picked up on her strange behavior, but Yorra hadn’t  _ said  _ anything in regards to her plans for the battle. Though she was loath to admit that she was also a little afraid to ask. 

“I guess, but.. Come on, Yorry wouldn’t do that. I trust her.” Isaiah dismissed again, sipping from his ice tea once the server brought it to them. “She knows my pokemon. You really think she’d do that to ‘em?”

“I know, I know… It was just a feeling, you know?” Jules smiled, feeling some encouragement from Isaiah’s words. “Maybe I’m worryin’ over nothin’! It won’t be a big deal and you guys’ll have a sick battle!” 

“Exactly. And I promise, when it’s all done, I will tell you both exactly why I started this challenge.” Isaiah held up his glass to toast. Jules smiled, picking up her water and clanking her glass gently against his.

“You better.”

* * *

_ I have to do this. _

Yorra fought to keep her hands from trembling. She sat in her gym locker room, hunched over and staring at her hands. Her stomach felt empty and her breath was staggered. Isaiah had finally come for his battle, and Yorra was dreading every second ticking toward the call for her to hit the stage. 

“Grow..?” Yorra felt Buttons nuzzle her side, always quick to pick up on her emotional state. She reached a hand into his mane, looking for what little comfort she could find in petting the Incineroar.

“This is for the best, Buttons. I have to do what’s best for him,” she parroted to her ace pokemon, eyes remaining on the ground as she halfheartedly pet the dark-fire type. 

“Groww…” Buttons showed clear disapproval, drawing Yorra’s gaze to him and locking his head between her hands.    
  


“I  _ have  _ to, Buttons. It’s for  _ his  _ safety.” Yorra reasserted, seeing her reflection in the bright yellow eyes staring back at her. Buttons. “He has no  **idea** what’s ahead of him. If he wins he could… he could end up…”

She had seen the victims left by the Elite 4. She knew what they would do to unwitting trainers who challenged them haphazardly. And she would  _ not  _ let that happen to Isaiah. No matter what it took. 

No matter what that meant she had to do.

“I… I won’t go full on. Just enough to scare him…” Yorra tried to reassure Buttons, as well as herself. “Just enough so that he gets the idea. You know I like his pokemon, too. I wouldn’t… I won’t go all out.”

Buttons still looked unsure, his bright yellow orbs trailing to the side. Yorra could feel his apprehension, sighing as she leaned her head on his. “I know… I know.” 

***KNOCK KNOCK***

Yorra nearly jumped out of her seat, biting her bottom lip. “It can’t be time yet…” She stood up, walking over to her locker room door and opening it. Yorra’s heart suddenly sank in her chest when it was revealed to be Isaiah.

“Hey.” He greeted with a kind smile.

“Sai. What’re you… doing here before the battle?” Yorra tried to put on a neutral expression, holding her head up.

“I just thought I’d come by and say hi. Feels like we haven’t really had a chance to chat. Hey, Buttons,” Isaiah nodded to the Incineroar, who answered with an affectionate growl. “I met a few of your friends while I was taking on the other leaders. Rylie was a character.”

“Was she now?” Yorra felt a small smirk rise on her lips. “I could almost swear I saw you shivering a bit when the battle started.”

“Damn it. I was afraid you’d pick up on that.” Isaiah clicked his tongue, letting out a small chuckle. “You know I hate clowns. Still, after the battle I was better. We even had a nice chat after.”

“I figured you two would get along if you got over your phobia.” Yorra let out a short laugh. But her mood quickly darkened as a part of her swiftly reminded her what was ahead of them. “Is that all?” 

“Is it alright if I come in for a bit?”

Yorra was still trying to mentally prepare herself. Having a last second chat with Isaiah would make it all the more difficult. Just what had been said was digging a pit deeper in her gut. “I uh… I’m still getting ready. Sorry. Plus we don’t have much time until the battle…”

Isaiah’s face contorted in disappointment, his lips thinning into a line. He could read past her bullshit as always. “I see. Well, I just wanted to say that whatever happens, don’t worry about it. Let’s just have a fun battle, okay?” He asked, gently slapping her shoulder. “If I lose, I’m clearly not ready. If I win, then I can move on. Either way, let’s get it done. And afterwards, let’s go grab a bite with Jules.”

Yorra’s hand tightened into a fist at her side as she numbly nodded her head, putting on a small smile. “Yeah… that sounds great.” 

_ I doubt we’ll be having much fun after this… _

“Alright. Then I guess I’ll see you out there.” Isaiah smiled, stiffly turning around and walking away. Yorra’s hands shook, biting her lip as anxiety weighed heavy on her shoulders.

“H-Hey, Sai.”

He stopped, looking over his shoulder. “Sup?”

“We’re… you said before that we’re family, right?”

“... Yeah. Of course we are, sis.” Yorra slowly drew her gaze up to meet his. Isaiah turned around, concern coloring his face. “What’s going on, Yorry? You can tell me.”

Yorra bit the inside of her cheek, searching for some excuse. “Sorry, just… I’ve been having some downer days lately. Don’t mind me.”

Isaiah numbly nodded, still unsure. “I gotcha… well I-”

_ “Will Isaiah Tua please come to the stage~! The battle is about to begin!” _

Isaiah cursed when he heard that, looking back at Yorra with some hesitation. “I gotta go. But listen, when this is all done, I wanna hear about it. Whatever it is, don’t worry. I got your back.” 

“Sai…” Yorra’s voice trailed off, but the Alolan native was already heading to the stage. Her lip began to quiver as she felt a bubbling self-loathing overwhelm her. She reached up and pulled at her hair, feeling as if she could rip them out of their roots. “ **GRAAAGH!”**

* * *

  
  


_ What have I done? _

“Isaiah Tua’s Salazzle is in the surgery wing. I believe that he and a friend are in the waiting room of that wing.”

_ It wasn’t supposed to go this far. _

Yorra’s heart beat a mile a minute. Her eardrums felt on the verge of popping from the pressure in her head. Her stomach was knotted in several places. She felt like at any moment she could throw up. 

_ It wasn’t supposed to be like  _ **_this!_ **

Yorra’s eyes were hazy and her mind in a fog. The battle with Isaiah was over due to a disqualification. Not due to anything Yorra did, but because Isaiah had jumped into the ring and used a second pokemon without recalling the previous one. 

All because Yorra couldn’t keep Maxima, her Tyranitar, under control.

The battle had started rough, Isaiah’s opener stronger than anticipated. The first battle she had been unable to initiate her plan. To utilize the underhanded tactics that she was well known for. Her resolve had wilted for just a moment, wanting to battle Isaiah fair and square.

But after losing the first battle in what almost seemed like ease for Isaiah, Yorra’s resolve renewed. She took out his Alola-Raichu with Bisharp, landing a crushing Sucker Punch that knocked it out cold. And in a not so subtle manner, Bisharp left a noticeable gash along Raichu’s ear and eye. 

Normally Yorra would have had Bisharp cut part of the ear off or leave it hanging to make a point, but her plan was to hurt, not maime, Isaiah’s pokemon. She knew that their friendship would be thrown into jeopardy for something like that. So she did her best to dial it back. 

But not all plans go how you want them.

Isaiah looked shocked but put on a more hardened expression. He seemed to understand what was going on and instead of complaining, decided to go all out. Salazzle, Lizzy as he nicknamed her, was his next pokemon to take the stage. It was more of a bitter fight this time, but Salazzle was too evasive for Bisharp with a strong focus on Special Attacks. Just as Bisharp got close enough to land, Lizzy gave it a Fire Blast for its troubles. 

And that was when everything went wrong. 

Yorra’s emotions started to go haywire. She felt that she might actually lose this battle without getting her point across. Might actually let Isaiah past her and onto an unforgiving Elite 4. She couldn’t allow that. So with anger and fear fueling her, she called out Maxima. Almost before she could think, it was already Mega-evolving. 

Isaiah knew it was a bad match-up. He made an attempt to recall Salazzle. But Yorra also knew how to cut that short. The Sandstorm kicked up in a manner of seconds before Isaiah could stop it, temporarily blinding him and cutting off his vision from Lizzy. Leaving it at the mercy of Maxima. And it was brutal.

Lizzy tried to outmaneuver Maxima with speed alone, but without Isaiah guiding her, the Salazzle could only remain defensive. Maxima put an end to its speed advantage with Earthquake, shaking the terrain and knocking it off its feet. With Lizzy’s movement disabled, Maxima quickly jumped on top of Lizzy. And that was when Yorra realized she lost control.

She ordered Maxima to end it with a Stone Edge,hoping to damage Lizzy just enough that it would have a difficult time moving the next day. Instead though, Maxima mercilessly slammed a rock on Lizzy’s body, far more cruelly than Yorra had wanted it to be. She called out, tried to tell Maxima to stop, but it ignored her as it did it again. It then picked up Lizzy in its mouth, shaking it like a ragdoll and crushing its waist in its jaws. Yorra realized too late just how far Maxima was going and cried for it to stop.

But it wasn’t until Isaiah’s Pangoro blasted Maxima with a devastating Drain Punch that her Tyranitar stopped. Lizzy fell to the floor, body twitching in agony as it gurgled out blood. Isaiah let out the most heart wrenching wail as he ran onto the field, cradling his poor pokemon in his arms. 

Yorra stood on her platform, vision shaking as she realized what Maxima had done. What  _ she  _ had done. She stood there, stock still as she watched the on-site medics take Lizzy onto a stretcher. Watched as Isaiah cried out in fear, begging for the medics to save her.

Watching as Isaiah finally met her eyes. And past the tears streaming down his face, she saw pure rage.

_ He won’t want to see me right now, b-but… I have to explain. _

It wasn’t long before Yorra reached the waiting room in the surgery wing. It was the hospital she worked and trained at, and she knew the layout well. There was no door, just a room overlooking the city with large industrial windows. Yorra stayed out of the entrance, hesitating to enter. All she could do was fear what was waiting for her on the other side. Fear what Isaiah might have to say. But she owed it to him to face the music.

Yorra let out a ragged breath, dragging her feet slightly as she walked inside. Sitting opposite the entrance was Isaiah, hunched over with his face buried in his hands. Next to him was Jules, a hand gently stroking his back in comfort. 

It was Jules that took notice of her first, the heir to the Jagger gym’s eyes bulging the moment she saw Yorra. Her eyes twitched between her friends before giving Yorra a small shake of her head, trying to tell her to leave. Yorra swallowed the built up saliva in her mouth, taking a moment to consider the warning.

“If anyone else had done that to my pokemon…” Yorra’s blood ran cold as Isaiah drew his hands out of his face, eyes red and half lidded as he glared directly into her eyes.” **Anyone else** aside from Jules… I would have beaten them within an inch of their  _ fucking  _ life Yorry.”

Yorra wilted under his gaze, holding her breath for a moment as she tried to regain her composure. 

“Don’t look away.  _ Look at me. _ ” Yorra trailed her eyes slowly back to Isaiah. He stood up, his 6’6 frame more looming than it had ever been before. “I need you to fully understand what I’m saying.”

“I-I do-”

“Anyone  **fucking** else, I would have ripped them apart!” Isaiah’s voice exploded, making Yorra wince. He had only ever been this angry a select few times to this level before, and was always aimed at someone else. So it hurt more knowing that this was the loudest, most torn up he had been even compared to those times. 

“Isa, let’s relax a bit-”

“Stay out of it, Jules!” Isaiah snapped back at her, causing the youngest Jagger to recoil. “It’s Lizzy who’s in surgery right now.  _ My  _ pokemon! Because of what  _ she  _ did!” Isaiah pointed a finger at Yorra, slowly shifting his gaze back to her. 

“I-It wasn’t supposed to go that far-” was Yorra’s weak defense, but Isaiah turned back around with a ferocity as he directed his anger back at her.

“Oh yeah?! Because it sure felt like it was!” A malicious smile spread across his face as his eyes bore down on her. “It felt like you were gettin’ mad you were startin’ to lose! So mad that you decided that maybe crippling one of my pokemon wasn’t such a bad idea!” 

“That wasn’t the plan!”

“Then what  _ was _ the plan, Yorry?! Huh?!” Isaiah demanded, taking several steps forward until they were only a meter apart. Rage filled tears streamed down his cheeks as he trembled with fury. “Why is it  _ my pokemon  _ had to get fucking mangled for your  **fucking plan?!** ”

“I wasn’t trying to cripple Lizzy, I promise!” Yorra answered with as much sincerity as she could muster. “I-I just wanted to show you! Show you just what you’d be dealing with, but the plan was never to-”

“HAHAHAHAHAHA~!” 

Yorra blinked owlishly at his dark laughter. Isaiah put a hand over his eyes, turning away slightly from Yorra. “Really? You were trying to ‘show me’ huh? Show me what?”

Yorra’s hand balled into a fist as she straightened her posture. “Show you what kind of treatment you would be getting from the Elite 4. Except they’d be far worse than me-”

“You think I don’t  **know** what they’re capable of?!” Isaiah drew his hand away, a snarl escaping his mouth. “News flash Yorry: I know  **exactly** what I’m getting into! I know what those four pieces of shit do to people! I’ve been preparing for it since day fucking one!” 

Yorra felt her breath catch in her throat as she stared up at his furious visage. “Y-You do? But then…” 

“Come on, Yorry! You think I didn’t do my homework?! That I’m one of those sheep out there that just buys into the bullshit that they feed us everyday?!” Isaiah shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I know  _ exactly  _ what those sick fucks do to people. I was as ready as I could be for what they could do to me. But…”

Isaiah’s voice started to crack, wheezing for breath as he lost his composure. Yorra felt her heart breaking as Isaiah looked back up at her vulnerably, his anger momentarily replaced with betrayal.

“But I wasn’t… prepared for my  _ best friend  _ to do that to me. For  _ you  _ to do that to Lizzy.” 

Yorra felt like throwing up her guts. She would rather him be angry than to look at her like that. She only now realized to the full extent the cost of her actions. Of her failure. 

“I-I’m… I’m so sorry…” Yorra choked out, her eyes misting as she collapsed to her knees, digging her face into her hands. “Maxima wasn’t supposed to go that far… I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…”

“... Lizzie will never be able to walk right again. Let alone battle.” Yorra trembled as his words continued to sink in. “Sorry doesn’t cut it, Yorry. I can’t… I can’t forgive you right now. Just… stay away for a while. I don’t want to see your face or that damn Tyranitar if I can help it.”

Isaiah knelt in front of her, Yorra dragging her eyes to meet his. “Don’t call me unless you have absolutely  **no** other option. Okay? I need time after this. I don’t know how long or if ever, but… I’ll come to you when I’m ready.”

Isaiah looked away, covering his mouth with his right hand as he huffed out. “I was ready to tell you, too…”

“T-Tell me what?”

“... It doesn’t matter now.” Isaiah shook his head, standing back up and going back to the waiting room chairs. Jules had returned to her seat, hands awkwardly wrestling in her lap. “Just do me a favor and leave.”

Yorra’s body shook, overwhelmed by the emotions raging inside of her. She slowly started to get up, pushing off the ground. She wanted to say more and beg for forgiveness, but knew better than to try. Isaiah wasn’t hearing it. 

“Is everything alright in here?” 

Yorra froze, a familiar but currently unwelcome presence entering the room. 

“W-We’re fine, doc. Sorry for the noise.” Jules was the first to speak. Yorra spared a quick look at Isaiah, but he was already giving the doctor a half-lidded glare, eyes flickering momentarily to Yorra.

“I see… please try to be mindful of the patients and-oh, Yorra.” She slowly looked back, seeing Doctor Palmer standing there. A look of surprise and minor longing on his face. “I didn’t realize you were here. Are you okay?”

Yorra’s boss and ‘mentor’, Dr. Palmer. He was also her in-work fling. A much older man whom she had sniffed out as an easy mark for some fun. But right now was the worst possible moment for him to show up.

Yorra sniffled, wiping her eyes. “Y-Yes sir, it’s nothing…” She tried to excuse. Dr. Palmer grabbed her arm, helping bring her up to her feet.

“It doesn’t look like nothing… Maybe you should come with me and get some air?” 

“Ah, just what I needed. The sleazeball doctor to show his face.” Yorra froze, eyes drifting to Isaiah. But his seething smile and eyes were directed at the doctor and not her. 

“Excuse me, young man?” Doctor Palmer narrowed his eyes, clearly offended.

“What the hell, Isa!” Jules tried to reprimand him. “Dont’ get mad at the doctor now! Apologize! ” 

“Sorry, but I don’t apologize to sleazy assholes who take advantage of their wards.” Isaiah spat, his smile falling into a frown as he continued to stare the doctor down. “Especially a fucking doctor who should know exactly how emotionally and mentally compromised a person is.” 

“I-I have no idea what you’re talking about…” Dr. Palmer denied as he shifted awkwardly in place. Yorra could only rub her arm, afraid to speak at all. “I understand you’re under a great deal of stress, but-”

“That’s a nice ring you’re wearin’ there, doc.” Isaiah was quick to cut him off, eyes basically becoming daggers. “Does your wife know you like to fuck young girls like Yorry here?”

“Th-That’s ludicrous! I won’t have you spreading false accusations like-”

“ **Fuck you** !” Isaiah stood up, looming over the doctor and clearly intimidating him. “I’m tired of assholes like you comin’ in Yorry’s life! You shoulda been a goddamn mentor and a role model for her! Instead you turned out like every other asshole and  **fuck** her like some horny dog!”

“Isaiah, stop!” 

“Y-You’re emotionally unstable! I-I’m calling security!”

“You fucking better before I rip your head off, doc!” 

Yorra bit her bottom lip, unable to take anymore and storming out of the waiting room. She held her hands over her ears, trying to ignore the rising voices. Both in the hospital and in her mind. Despite the sense that Isaiah spoke, her mind battled back, screaming to justify her actions.

_ It wasn’t my fault! _

Yorra made it to the bathroom, washing her face in the sink. 

_ He just doesn’t understand, I did it for him! _

Yorra let out trembling breaths, slowly lifting her gaze to look at her reflection. _   
  
_

_ He thinks what I did was bad?! He has no idea! _

All she felt was disdain for the girl looking back at her. Anger swelled up inside, burning like a wildfire.

_ He has no fucking clue! _ _   
  
_

_ I’ll show him. If I really wanted to, I could do much FUCKING WORSE! _

“GRAAGH!” Yorra slammed her bare knuckles into the mirrors, shards of glass cutting her hand. Blood trickled down her fingers, but she paid it no mind as she continued to stare at the fractured reflection of herself.

_ He’ll see. The next trainers won’t get it so lucky.  _ **_Then_ ** _ he’ll fucking know that what I did was  _ **_nothing._ **

Something snapped in Yorra that day. And soon, what was once just dirty tactics would escalate into something far more gruesome.

* * *

Isaiah puffed out a cloud of smoke, leaning on the steel rail of the hospital’s designated smoking area. After the altercation with the doctor, Isaiah was ordered to leave until he could control himself. He was shown leniency due to his current situation and Lizzy’s state, but was warned that another outburst like that would get him banned from entering. Thinking of Lizzy first, Isaiah did as asked and getting some air.

“Hey.” Isaiah spared a look over his shoulder, seeing Jules approaching. 

“Hey.”

“You cooled off now?” Jules asked, standing just behind him.

“Not really… but I don’t wanna rip anyone apart at this very moment, at least.” Jules gave a small chuckle.

“I guess that’s better than nothing… I forgot that you smoke. I thought you quit?” Jules leaned on the bar next to him, concern ever present on her face.

“I stopped smoking as much. But I keep a pack on me for moments like this.” Isaiah admitted, sucking in another cloud before exhaling. 

“I see…” Jules seemed to have trouble finding more to say, a silence following her words. Not wanting to linger in it, Jules gave an awkward laugh. “But man… you really told that doctor off. How’d you know that he was… you know…”

“Fuckin’ Yorry?” Isaiah didn’t feel like being subtle, raising a brow at Jules. “Yorry admitted a little while back that she was messing around with a doctor she worked under. Pretty easy to put two and two together.”

“A-Ah, I see… man, I thought you were going off for no reason. Guess it was just bad luck.”

“Last things I wanna see right now are assholes like that.” It took a moment to recall it, but Isaiah remembered his initial outburst against Jules. “Sorry about snapping at you earlier. I know you were tryin’ to help, but I had too much to say to Yorry.”

“O-Oh, don’t sweat it. I uh… I understand.” Jules rubbed his shoulder gently. “I just… I wish it hadn’t come to that.”

“Me too.” Isaiah sighed, flicking his cigarette off into the dark of night. “It’ll be a while before I can look at her again. If at all.”

“I know… but thanks for not completely turning your back on her.” Isaiah looked back at the small smile Jules wore. “Most people would have cut her off completely.”

Isaiah thinned his lips into a line. “It took a lot to do that much. But…” Some part of him fought the notion, but his heart won the battle. “But she’s still family. No matter how much I don’t wanna even see her right now.”

“But even so, you still care. There’s nothin’ wrong with that.” Jules gently grabbed his shoulder, giving an encouraging smile. “Just take your time, ‘kay? I’ll look out for Yors how I can! And feel free to rely on me too!”

Isaiah gave an appreciative smile. “Thanks, Jules.” He pushed off the rail, turning back to the hospital. “I’m gonna go check on Lizzy. You can take off if you want.”

“I can stay as long as you need.”

“It’s okay. I think I need some alone time, anyways.” Isaiah gave a short shake of his head. “But know I appreciate it a lot.”

“... Okay.” Jules conceded, not wanting to be overbearing. “I’ll call you tomorrow and see how things are going.”

“Sounds good.” Isaiah nodded, walking toward the glass doors. He stopped just in front of them, looking up to the sky. “Take… take care of Yorry. She’s gonna need you now more than ever.”

“I’ll do my best!” 

  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be continued…
> 
> I don’t know what it was, but I felt compelled to come back and write more for the adventures of Isaiah in the world of Zirca. I do still love Yorra and the rest of the colorful characters belonging to Nyaantcha on Twitter. And I thought I’d take this into a darker direction more in keeping with the original darkness of her setting. 
> 
> Well, I hoped you all liked that little chapter! It was fun coming up with the concept for it and making something a little more emotional and not so much with a happy ending like in the previous chapter. Recovering from covid came with a strange resurgence of ideas I guess lmao
> 
> The next chapter, whenever I get around to it, will honestly be more like this one as well. While Isaiah might have brought a little more light into her life, Yorra has a way of pushing back against that light. And in some cases, it’s irreversible.


	3. What If: For a Friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A What-If Chapter based on an image made by Nyaantcha and shown in this chapter.
> 
> Isaiah and Jules don't take the dark message sent by Yorra and her supposed new man Dorado lightly, and decide to take matters in their own hands. Even if it means sacrificing everything.
> 
> Warning: Graphic image with implied sex and drugs inside.

What If: For a Friend

It had been several months since Isaiah last saw Yorra. Things between them had still been shaky, and they had yet to truly reconcile after she had maimed his Salazzle. Isaiah had struggled with whether he should try and work things out, but ultimately stopped himself. And, unfortunately, by the time he was ready to give Yorra a chance, she had gone on a distant internship in Lower Zirca for her medical profession.

Isaiah wouldn’t admit it, but he took her leaving a little personal. Thinking that she was avoiding him. It felt selfish to think so, but he would still make the effort to talk to her when she got back. Even if he would act a little more petty while doing it.

So when Jules called saying they needed to meet about Yorra, he wasn’t exactly thrilled to go. But he still loved Jules enough to hear her out.

“Alright, I’m here Jules. What’s the big-” Isaiah felt the breath nearly squeezed out of his chest when Jules surprised him with an extremely tight hug. “Jules? What…”

“I’m so glad you came… I…” Her voice was shaky, and he could feel a slight quivering in her shoulders. Isaiah felt his throat dry out and a dark cloud pass over him. He quickly reached up, gently but firmly pushing Jules back just enough so that they could meet eyes.

“What happened? Did something happen to Yorra?”

Jules sucked in a trembling breath, her eyes puffy from crying. Isaiah felt his lip tighten. “Don’t tell me she’s…”

“N-No, not that.” Jules quickly understood his meaning, but her voice was anything but reassuring. “But she’s… she’s definitely in trouble.”

“Trouble? Trouble how?” Isaiah asked, letting go of her arms so that he could let her speak. “What happened?”

Jules’ dragon like teeth gently scraped against her lip as she shifted her gaze away. “I’ll… I’ll show you.” She turned around, leading Isaiah into her living room. 

To his surprise, Buttons was there, the Incineroar looking at him in alarm. He quickly hopped to his feet and wrapped its tremendous arms around Isaiah. “Groar…”

“Hey, big guy. It’s gonna be okay.” Isaiah tried to reassure him, rubbing its back. “We’ll figure this out.”

“I’ve been taking care of Buttons since Yorra left. So he knows what’s going on…” Jules walked over to her TV, turning it on. “I got this message today, and…” Jules rubbed her arm, looking at the ground with a disturbed expression. “I-I shouldn’t be showing you this whole thing for Yorra’s sake, b-but… You need to see it.”

“I don’t follow…” Isaiah raised a brow, but Jules just shook her head.

“I’m tryin’ to think of Yorra’s privacy, but I know it’s not a big deal to you. You probably won’t even think about it, honestly… Just… be ready for somethin’ upsetting, okay?”

Isaiah’s jaw clenched, feeling uneasy but nodding his head. “Go ahead.”

Jules nodded, slowly raising the remote and pressing play:

Isaiah’s face drained of blood. He started to hear a buzzing in his ears and his vision became hazy. His quickening heartbeat echoed alongside the buzz, causing a migrane that felt like someone was tapping the sjde of his skull with a hammer. He could barely hear the smothered voice of Jules being drowned out by the buzz. Isaiah began to hyperventilate, breath haggard as his shaking hands clawed over his ears. He knelt over as his emotions began to overwhelm him, stomach churning as his head swam.

“GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!” 

Isaiah wailed in agony, grabbing the couch and flipping it over. As red filled his eyes, he kicked a hole in the wooden vanity against the wall, his swelling emotions erupting like a volcano. It wasn’t until Jules and buttons wrapped their arms around him that he stopped.

With his utter rage beginning to simmer down, grief and heartbreak soon took its place. His eyes welled with tears, and he whimpered as he collapsed into Jules arms. He quietly began to sob, wrapping an arm around her neck and hugging her close. Jules returned his embrace, her own sorrow spilling out as they wept together.

It took some time for their emotions to settle. Isaiah sat at her dining table with a cup of tea in his hands, Jules in the seat next to him. A tense quiet lingered for some time as neither elected to spea. It was Jules who spoke first:

“I’m… I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have-”

“Don’t.” Isaiah shook his head, his hardened gaze still drilling a hole in the wall opposite them. “You had to see this before me. I’m sure it was even harder then.” 

Jules numbly nodded, her cup visibly shaking as she held it to her lips. Isaiah spared a glance at Buttons, the pokemon hunched over as it sat criss-cross on the ground. Unlike them, he didn’t look nearly as sullen. No, Isaiah sensed a silent fury radiating from him.

Something that was now returning to Isaiah and Jules.

“So that _cocksucker_ Dorado Guerrero has her, huh?” Isaiah grated out, recognizing the name that the inebriated Yorra had uttered. 

“Yeah. We’ve been pesterin’ for a while to get a call to Yorra. That bastard finally answered, and sent **that**.” Jules began to seeth, her teeth grinding together. “We’ve gotta save her.”

“Yeah. We do.” Isaiah sighed, putting his elbows on the table and leaning forward. “But it’s not gonna be a walk in the park, even for the two of us. He’s a member of the Elite 4 after all. Not to mention a big time CEO of a mega-corp. He’s gonna have security up the ass, no doubt.” 

“I don’t give a damn how many assholes get in our way! We’ll bust through all of ‘em!” Jules snarled, slamming her fist into her palm. 

“We can, but only with the right approach.” Isaiah stroked his chin in thought. 

“You got somethin’ in mind?”

“Yeah… but we’re gonna need to prep.” Isaiah nodded, tapping his table. “First, let’s go over our numbers. Is there anyone else we can rely on to help us with this?”

“Huh? Oh, well…” Jules looked away in thought, tapping the desk. “There’s Suzuen. If he knew just that Yorra’s in trouble, he’d join us in a split second, but-”

“No, not him. He’s just a kid.” Isaiah shook his head firmly. “We’re possibly walking into hell and might not come out. Not to mention we’re not going there just to rescue her.”

Jules narrowed her eyes, a grave expression coming over her. “Yeah. We can’t let that asshole walk away.”

“No, we can’t. Not only because he needs to pay for what he’s done, but also for Yorra’s safety.” Isaiah’s brow hardened, his hand on the edge of crushing his cup. “Dorado’s gotta die. Plus, I’d hate to show that kid how much we might enjoy doin’ it.”

Normally Jules might be disturbed by that statement. But the smallest flash of memory was enough to make her share the sentiment. “Yeah… no kiddin’.”

“Anyone else?”

“Well… I know if we told ‘em, maybe Kairo and Rylie would.”

“No, we’re not bringin’ them.” Isaiah shook his head, causing her to raise a brow.

“Huh? Why not? Rylie’s a good friend to Yorrs and Kairo’s one of my good friends!”

“Both of them are from Lower Zirca, not to mention Gym Leaders who answer to the Elite 4.” Isaiah pointed out, leaning back in his chair. “I can’t trust them. Especially Kairo. She’s a sister to a member of the E4 and could throw this whole plan up in flames.”

Jules opened her mouth to argue, but hesitated. While she liked Rylie, she couldn’t profess to know her personally no matter how close she seemed to be with Yorra. Kairo was an important friend, but at the same time she could understand Isaiah’s hesitation to trust her. It would be better to not put that trust in jeopardy now of all times. “Okay… but that just leaves us then. As much as Didier hates Dorado, he doesn’t have much love for Yorra either.”

“Yeah, I ruled him out from the beginning.” Isaiah sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I guess it’s just us, then. That’s fine though, I think we’ll be enough. Us and Buttons.”

“Groar…” Buttons let out a low growl of acceptance, the flames on it

“Yeah. Plus our Pokemon teams are plenty strong! We can take out his goons, no sweat!” Jules grinned confidently, holding up her bicep and flexing.

“Yeah…” Isaiah let out a small chuckle, his voice depleted of energy. His finger tapped against the table as he seemed to contemplate something. “Alright. The three of us are doin’ this.” Isaiah stood from his seat, with Jules following suit.

“Great! When do we leave?”

“Give me a couple weeks.” 

  
Jules blinked owlishly, mouth going slightly agape. “Wha-a couple weeks?! We should be going tonight! We can’t let her stay in that-that bastards hands for that long!”

“I know coming from me this is gonna sound funny, but I need you to calm down.” Isaiah gently raised a hand.

“How can I calm down when I know that every day we put off is every day that Yorra’s getting drugged and fucked like some animal?!” Jules snapped, reaching forward and grabbing his shirt in frustration.

“And if we fuck up or get killed, how much fucking longer will she **stay** like that?!” Isaiah snapped back, teeth gritted. 

Jules hesitated, her seething anger momentarily waning. “W-Well-”

“Look! Look…” Isaiah reached forward and gently wrapped his hand around the back of her neck, his touch bringing some ease to her. “I know exactly how you feel. You know I do. But if we do this wrong… we could both end up dead. Even worse, he could capture us and I _really_ don’t wanna imagine what that would mean. But either way, it would mean Yorra would be stuck in that hellhole for the rest of her life or until that sick **fuck** gets bored.”

Jules quivered in his hand, biting her lip as his logic started to sink in. Jules hunched forward sullenly, giving a small nod. “Y-Yeah… you’re right. You’re right. Sorry...”

“It’s okay.” Isaiah pulled her back in, arms wrapping around her. She quickly returned it, clinging to his back as she sought after what comfort she could find. “It’s okay. We’re gonna do this right. I’ve got a plan. Just trust me, and I promise that we’ll get Yorra out of that shithole. Together.”

“Yeah… Yeah…” Jules sniffled, nuzzling the crook of his neck. “J-Just don’t take too long, okay?”

“I’ll do my best.” 

* * *

Isaiah laid two sets of lily bouquets down in front of two gravestones. The name etched into the first was Mafa’ Tua, and the other Kaia Tua. Isaiah exhaled a deep breath as he stared somberly at the graves before him.

“Hey, mom. Hey, sis. Sorry I haven’t visited too often. I uh… well, I’ll be honest. It’s just depressing to come here.” Isaiah pursed his lips, eyes trailing to his feet. “Sorry if that upsets you. I just… You’re both always on my mind.”

A cold breeze brushed against his cheek. Isaiah took it as some reassurance from beyond the grave and smiled. “I knew you’d get it. Sill, I’m sorry for not visiting more. And… for what I have to do next.”

Isaiah bit his lip, eyes trailing to his sister’s grave. “Kai… I got some bad news. Well, maybe good news since I doubt you wanted me to try anyways, but… I have to give up on going after your killer.” 

Isaiah waited a moment, watching the grave as if it would answer his words. He allowed the silence to persist a moment longer before continuing. “I know I promised I would find her and… well, do things momma wouldn’t approve of, but now I don’t think I’ll be able to do that.”

Another gentle wind chilled his skin, almost as if urging him to continue. “My friend, she’s… she’s in a bad spot. So I have to go and get her. But in doing so… I’m pretty much not gonna have a future after that. I don’t plan on dying, but I doubt I can return to normal living anytime soon.” 

Isaiah paused, contemplating his next words. “But if it means saving her from a life as some prick’s toy… I’m more than willing to give it all up. Please… watch over me and Jules as we do what we have to. I love you both and… maybe I’ll see you soon.” 

Isaiah placed his hands on both stones, bowing his head as he made a silent prayer for strength.

* * *

“Man, nothin’ beats an Alolan meat pie!” Jules let out a moan of pleasure as she bit a hand sized meat pie. She sat across from Isaiah as they both enjoyed the delights of their favorite restaurant Sagato Bakery*. Buttons sat close by with Luga and Fluffers, Jules Ampharos, at a pokemon feeding area, the three crunching on pokeblocks instead of pies. “Glad we’re eatin’ here before the big trip!”

“Same. Plus we can take a few on the road with us. Got a microwave on the trailer.” Isaiah smiled, taking a chunk out of his own pie. 

“Hell yeah! I could eat these for days!” Jules scarfed down another, crumbs left on her cheeks. “Though maybe I shouldn’t eat too many or I’ll be too stuffed for the big fight.”

“Yeah, Maybe not the best idea.” Isaiah laughed, sipping on his tea. “Don’t worry, we’ll have more than just meat pies for the trip.”

“Cool. Still, I’m a little surprised you got us a big ol’ RV for the trip.” Jules wiped her cheeks with a napkin. “I don’t think we’re gonna be on that long of a drive there, right?”

Isaiah sighed, setting his drink down and leaning forward on his elbows. “About that… there’s one thing I wanted to ask you before we head out.”

“Sup?”

“Maybe you should consider staying behind?” 

Jules stiffened, eyes becoming owlish as she shifted her sharp yellow eyes to Isaiah. If looks could kill, Isaiah would say that he’d probably be dead right now as he saw the dragon in her barely contain itself. “ **Huh?”**

Isaiah raised his hands in surrender. “Jules, hear me out-”

“Are you _REALLY_ asking _me_ that?!” Jules slammed her hands on their table, standing up and leaning forward so that she was in Isaiah’s face. “You got some big **balls** on you to ask me that after everything! What the hell, Isa?!” 

Isaiah spared a small look around, as if pleading for help from the staff. The bakers stood stock still for a moment before returning to their duties without a second thought.Luga, Fluffers and Buttons quietly watched as well, his Ace Pokemon shaking his head in disappointment. _So much for having witnesses to calm her down._ He took a deep breath and tried to maintain his composure. 

“Please sit back down and hear me out, Jules. Please?” Isaiah asked, hoping he wasn’t going to get slugged for his troubles. 

Jules narrowed her eyes, clearly seething, but slowly sat back in her seat and crossed her arms. “You got five seconds to explain yourself.”

“Fives seconds isn’t really that much-”

“FIVE-”

“Okay, okay! Chill!” Isaiah cleared his throat as he tried to move this along. “Look… What we’re about to do, the person we’re about to turn into a fucking corpse… it’s not just something we can go home and have a party after doing. There’s consequences, and not ones that’ll just go away after a couple days. You understand?”

Jules eye twitched, annoyance clear in her expression but somewhat withheld. “Go on…”

“When this is over… we have to go on the run. There’s no avoiding it.” Isaiah continued, glad he hadn’t eaten a fist yet. “Any plans we had for the future? They’re… they’re pretty much over.”

Jules eyes bulged as iit started to sink in, eyes trailing to the table. “You… you really think so?”

“Yes. Whatever ambitions we have go out the window. Our lives, our dreams… they’re gone. We’re planning an assault on not only a Mega-corp head but a member of the E4. Just on principle, they’ll come after us. We can’t just drive back home and hope it all cleans up nice. Things aren’t that easy.”

Isaiah rubbed the scruff of hair on his face, watching Jules as she sat there, silent. “I’ve already accepted that I don’t have a future after this. But you still have a chance to back out. Stay here and follow your dreams of becoming the next in line for your family’s Gym. I know Yorry means as much to you as she does to me, but you have a lot of your own things to consider. Just…” 

Isaiah reached a hand out and gently grasped her wrist, Jules dragged her eyes back to meet his. “I want you to understand that’s what it means for us to go through with this. We’re tossing everything aside for her sake. But you don’t have to. Stay and leave it to me.”

“So you already threw out your own dreams?” Jules asked, brow hardening. Isaiah retracted his hand, letting out a small breath.

“I never had any grand dreams. I just wanted to live in peace and have fun with my friends. My _family_. But it seems like every time I tried, somethin’ fucks it up.” He let out a dry chuckle. His gaze fell to the table, expression becoming somber. “There was only one thing I wanted more than anything… but Yorra’s more important than that.”

Silence fell as they sat in contemplation. Isaiah watched Jules, her expression sullen with thought as a frown slowly crept across her lips. She took a deep breath and looked back up at Isaiah. “There anything else you wanna say?”

Isaiah raised a brow, giving a small shake of his head. “Nah, that was it.”

“Good.” Jules reached forward and grabbed his collar. Without warning, she slammed her forehead into his, leaving a sharp pain in his skull and ringing in his ears.

“Fuck, Jules!” Isaiah winced as he held his hands over the likely forming welt on his head. “If you were gonna hit me, couldn’t ya slap me or punch me?!”

“It got my point across didn’t it?” Jules casually began to eat another meat pie. “You think I haven’t thought about that stuff? I… I didn’t want to think about it too much, but I know exactly what we’re doin’! I’m not that dense.”

“Your skull begs to differ…” Isaiah put his ice cold cup on the spot, watching her with a small frown. “So you’ve decided then?”

“Of course I don’t wanna give up my dreams...” Jules’ eyes trailed away from Isaiah, her voice falling low. “There’s still plenty I wanna accomplish too. But if Yorrs isn’t here when I do, then what’s the point?” Jules brought her gaze back to Isaiah, a fire burning bright in her yellow orbs. “We’re bringin’ Yorrs home no matter what. Even if it means tossin’ out a couple dreams. And you’re **not** leavin’ me behind. Got it?” 

Isaiah watched her for a long moment, slowly taking the cup off his head. “As long as you know what we’re getting into, I’ve got no complaints. Well, aside from the headbutt.”

“Eh, you’ll be fine.” Jules smirked playfully, finishing off another bite. Isaiah scoffed, rubbing his head again before picking up another pie. “Besides… I’m not goin’ just to save Yorrs.”

“Oh?” Isaiah raised a brow. 

“Yeah. I’m goin’ to make sure _both_ my friends come home safe.” Jules smiled gently at him, causing Isaiah to wilt under her gaze. “So don’t get any ideas like tryin’ to leave me behind, got it?”

“... Yeah. I won’t. I promise.” Isaiah nodded, giving a small smile in return. “Thanks, Jules.” 

“Of course! Now enough of that depressin’ shit! Let’s make sure Dorado eats shit!” 

“Heh, yeah. We’ll kick his teeth in. Together.” 

* * *

“H-Hey, Mishter Dorado…”

“Please, Yorra. I think we’re well past titles like that.” Dorado adjusted his tie as he watched his plaything in the mirror of his personal quarters. It was Sunday morning, and he was getting ready for a relatively quiet day of work likely spent at home managing certain contracts from home. He lived in a grandiose mansion deep in the hills of Lower Zirca, away from the prying eyes of the public and guarded to the teeth with pokemon and his personal men.

He did so love Sundays, as it meant more free time. And more free time meant more time fucking his most recent ‘lover’. He had to admit, she was certainly better than most in recent memory, as well.

“Feel free to call me Dorado.” He told her, turning around as he walked over to the bed where she lay, sprawled out and barely covered in a select set of lingerie he had picked out for her. 

“Dorado… Can I get a bit more Mythril? I’m kinda comin’ down…” Yorra almost begged, turning over and immediately clawing at his pants.

“You’re quite the greedy girl, aren’t you?” Dorado chuckled, grasping her chin gently in his fingers. “Well, you know how to get some if you want it. You have to earn it.”

“Hehehe, okay~. If that’s what you want…” Yorra immediately began to unzip his pants, getting ready as usual to pleasure him in what ways he wanted.

“Good girl…” Dorado chuckled, his hand stroking the top of her head as he waited for her to get to work. 

***Plop***

Dorado briefly let his eyes wander to his window, doing a double take as he realized the sky was overcast and that rain was beginning to fall. He narrowed his eyes, a small bit of suspicion creeping in his mind. _It was supposed to be sunny today… though I suppose the weatherman is often wrong, anyways._

***Knock knock***

Dorado groaned, gripping Yorra’s head to signal her to stop. “What is it? I’m busy right now.”

_“Sorry sir, I just wanted to inform you that our comms are down.”_

Dorado blinked, turning completely away from Yorra even as she desperately tried to keep working on his pants. “What do you mean our comms are down?! Get in here!” He quickly redid his pants, watching as one of his black suited men walked inside.

“Sorry again for the disturbance, but we suddenly started getting interference when the storm started.” The agent answered. “Even cell signals and ground lines are out.”

“What?!” Dorado quickly fished his phone out of his pocket, trying to put a call out. “Son of a-what’s causing it?!”

“We’re not sure, sir. This sudden storm came out of nowhere, and-”

  
  


***BOOM***

The mansion mildly shook, Dorado snapping his head up in alarm. “The hell was that?!”

**“RAAAAAAAAOR~!”**

Yorra’s eyes momentarily returned to focus, familiarity passing over her face. “B-Buttons..?”

* * *

“Looks like we’re good.” Isaiah said, clicking on his phone to affirm that there was no connection. He stood with Jules and Buttons atop a hill a small ways away from Dorado’s mansion that overlooked it. “Magnezone’s gonna stay out here and keep an EMP goin’ while we’re inside. No one’s gettin’ a call out while we’re here.”

  
  


“Wow, that was a great idea!” Jules grinned, rubbing Magnezone’s head affectionately. “So, we goin’ in the front gate?” 

“Hell yeah we are.” Isaiah smiled, tightening the rope wraps on his hands. “Ready?”

“I’ve been ready since we got his little ‘message’.” Jules blew air out of her nose, smacking her knuckles together. “Let’s do this.” 

“Alright. Let’s get to work.” 

“Groar!” Buttons growled in anticipation. The three started to head down the hill, making their way to the lavished front gate barring their way inside. 

“This is it. Be ready.” Isaiah said,expression stony as they got closer and closer. “Whatever happens… I want you to know that there’s no one I’d rather go to hell and back with.”

Jules raised a brow, briefly looking at him with a small flush on her face. “G-Geez, don’t say stuff like that right before we get started! It’s bad luck.” She tried to laugh it off, but a small appreciative smile rested on her lips. “But… same here. I love ya, big man.”

“Love you, too.” Isaiah rolled his neck, letting out a loud crack. “Now let’s save our girl.” 

“Halt! You two are on private property!” Isaiah and Jules stopped, Buttons letting out a low growl as two men in black suits with Houndoom’s at their side barred their path. “You need to vacate the premises immediately.”

“Oh, it’s okay! We have an appointment with Dorado!” Isaiah said, giving a friendly smile. 

The guards looked at one another before glaring. “Mr. Guererro doesn’t take house visits for appointments. I believe we’ll need to take you both in and work this out.”

“Ah, that’s kind of you gentlemen. But you know, I think we’ll see ourselves up.” Isaiah looked back at their Incineroar companion. “Mind opening the front door for us?”

“Incine…” Buttons lept in the air, fire bursting around its forearms as it held them in an X. All before diving at the guards like a rocket. “ROAR!” 

“GAGH-”

***BOOM***

The front gate, along with the guards and their pokemon, were blown away by the impact of Buttons’ Flare Blitz. The Incineroar stood in the crater left behind, flames and smoke trailing from his body. Buttons was finally able to unleash the fury and frustration it held onto for weeks waiting. And the burnt corpses left behind were a small display of that anger. The Houndooms had survived the attack, but quivered under the might of Buttons ferocious glare.

**“RAAAAAAAAOR~!”**

The Houndooms cowered from Buttons, quickly running for the hills as they whimpered. The Incineroar scoffed, rubbing the tip of its nose with its thumb before walking forward. 

“Now _that’s_ how you make an entrance.” Isaiah smirked, walking forward with Jules again to pass through the broken gates. As they walked through, they could see over twenty men with their Pokemon, ranging from Houndooms, Mightyenas and Arboks, running toward them through the beautiful grass courtyard. The main mansion was over three stories in height with winding stairs that led to the paved ground made for vehicles. 

“What a gaudy place. Can’t wait to see it burn down.” Jules spat, crossing her arms as she and Isaiah stopped to wait for the guards. 

“Once we get Yorry, nothin’s really stoppin’ us from goin’ a bit ape shit.” Isaiah chuckled, watching as the guards began to surround them. “Gentlemen! Like we told the guys at the gate, we’re here to see your boss, Dorado! We can see ourselves up though.”

“You two just made the biggest mistake of your lives.” The guards fished into their jackets, producing guns. Those were quickly pulled away from their hands, causing them to gasp. “Wh-What the-?!”

“Guns? Really? Who needs those when you have Pokemon, right?” Isaiah laughed, looking up. Floating through the air on its tail was an Alolan Raichu, its hands brimming with Psychic energy. “Thanks, little man.”

“Rachu~!” It chirped, gathering all the weapons from each guard into a ball before hoisting them through the air and over the walls of the surrounding mansion barrier. 

“Now we got all of ya honest! Hope you punks are ready!” Jules drew all five of her pokeballs from her waist, Isaiah doing the same. They called forth their entire teams, Luga and Fluffers taking the lead as they immediately shifted into their Mega forms. 

“Ah, but we don’t got all the time in the world for you fools. So how about we give you over to our friends?” Isaiah put his thumb and index finger in his mouth and let out a high pitched whistle. The guards watched in wonder for a long moment as silence was what followed. That was until the brush outlining the surrounding hills began to tremble. 

They watched in awe and horror as dozens of pokemon burst from the trees, all ranging from giant to small breeds like Aggron and Rhyhorn, Crawdaunt and Onyx and a great deal more. They busted down the remainder of the front gate walls, all swarming on the guards and their pokemon with great ferocity. 

“GRAAAGH~!” Jules and Isaiah let out a battle cry, running forward with their main teams of pokemon and charging the trembling guards that stood in their way. 

“H-Hold the line! Don’t let them get past-gagh!” Isaiah threw a jaw breaking flying knee into the first guard he reached, the man’s head cracking as it hit the ground.

“Y-You brats-” Jules nailed the next guard with a palm strike to the nose, breaking it before grabbing his collar and flipping him over on his neck. 

“Let’s go!” Isaiah and Jules parroted to the other, continuing their mad dash for the mansion. 

“Houndoom, Flamethrower!” A guard ordered, pointing at Jules and Isaiah.

“Doo-”

“Swamper~!” Luga speared its fists into the Houndoom at blistering speeds using Waterfall, the rain increasing its speed exponentially. It crumpled from the hit, Luga’s one-hit power overwhelming. 

“Amphoro~!” Fluffers blasted the guard with a Thunderbolt before he could call out another pokemon, quickly putting the man down before following after her master with Luga.

“Th-There’s too many of them!”

“W-We can’t stop all these pokemo-GAGH!” 

“That really worked out great!” Jules gave Isaiah a smile, but one laced with sympathy. “You really okay with releasin’ all those pokemon? They were important to you, right?”

“They were. But we needed them now more than ever.” Isaiah kept his eyes forward as they approached the mansion. “They earned their freedom. I can’t ask anymore of ‘em. I’ve still got a few aside from my main team, but…” 

Isaiah stopped, looking back at the pokemon caught across his journey in Zirca. They fought with all their might and continued to overwhelm and distract the guards for them. He gave a small smile, nodding his final goodbye. “Thank you all.” 

With that, he and Jules continued up the stairs to their main target.

* * *

“H-Hey, where are we going?” Yorra complained as Dorado roughly dragged her by the arm, making his way with her toward the landing pad his transport Corviknight waited for him.

“We’re taking a little vacation, darling. Don’t think too much about it.” Dorado answered, his voice barely hiding his panic.

_I should just leave her. But I’ll need a bargaining chip._ Dorado nearly let her arm go several times, thinking she was slowing him down. But he tried to think about it practically. Besides, he would still need a source of entertainment until he reached Rudri. He’d have all the protection and time he needed to figure out who would _dare_ come after him once he reached safety.

“Look, there’s our ride.” Dorado grinned as they reached the outside, rain still pouring. His Corviknight carriage waited for them, flapping its steel wings in anticipation. “We’ll be on vacation in no time, darling.”

“Sounds great! I’m ready for more fun~!” Yorra giggled from behind him. But as he dragged her forward, she suddenly stiffened in his grasp. “I-Isa..?”

“What?” Dorado snapped his head back. Only to witness as a Talonflame sailed past them at blistering speeds. Dorado flinched as he thought it was aimed at him, only to see it charge instead directly into the Corviknight. The transport bird squealed in pain, being knocked out from sheer force of the attack. 

“S-Shit!” Dorado snarled, releasing Yorra in his fury before snapping around. “Just who the fuck are… you?”

“Been a while, you juiced up prick.” Jules was the first to speak, a dragon toothed grin shining his way. “How’s your nose?”

“Jagger… You’re the one doing this?!” Dorado snarled, eyelid twitching in frustration. His eyes flickered to Isaiah, the Alolan native glaring daggers. “And who the fuck are you supposed to be?”

“I’m the guy that’s gonna rip your fuckin’ head off is who.” Was Isaiah’s answer, cracking his knuckles and neck. 

Dorado stared for a long moment before bursting out in laughter, a dark grin spreading across his lips. “I see. I assume that you both didn’t appreciate the little message I sent? So you came here to take her back from me, is that it?”

“That’s **one** reason we came here,” said Jules, the smile on her lips soon disappearing. Buttons walked between the two, the Incineroar’s body tense with anticipation. 

“Guys~! Hey~! It’s been a while~!” Yorra called out to them, staggering to her feet as she looked barely stable enough to talk. “I’m so happy you’re here! We’re about to go on vacation! A-Are you guys coming?”

“We sure are, Yorra.” Isaiah’s smile did nothing to conceal his building rage as he looked upon his old friend. “In fact, we’re your ride! So come over here and we’ll get ready to go. Right after we have a _talk_ with Dorado.” 

“Okay~!” Yorra stumbled forward. Dorado snatched her arm though, frowning through gritted teeth. “Hm? Wh-What’s wron-” her voice was cut off when Dorado pulled her to his chest and wrapped his muscular arm around her throat.

“You brats think I’d just let her walk over to you? Don’t take another step if you want poor Yorra to keep breathing.” Dorado chuckled darkly, taking a step back from Jules and Isaiah. “I have other transportation I can use. Me and my soon-to-be wife will be taking our leave.”

“H-Honey, i-its hard to breathe…” Yorra coughed out, tapping his arm weakly. 

“Yeah… because we were dumb enough to think you’d hand her over, right?” Isaiah scoffed, looking at Jules. “This fuckin’ guy, huh?”

“No kiddin’.” She shook her head in amusement. 

“Smiley. Mind Grabbin’ Yorra for us?”

Dorado blinked in wonder, only to find his chest being blasted by an invisible force. The air rushed out of his lungs and he was forced to let go of Yorra. As he hit the ground, a Gengar materialized in front of Yorra, smiling kindly at her as it picked her up in its arms. 

“Hey~ Smiley!” 

“Gengar!” It chirped, rushing back toward Isaiah and Jules. 

“You little-” Dorado drew a pokeball and threw it. “Gengar! Kill it!” 

“Gen-” 

**“GROAR!”**

Just as his own Gengar materialized, it was soon met with Buttons soaring forward, flames left in his wake as it blasted the Gengar with a Darkest Lariat. Dorado’s own Gengar was out before it could even make a move, sent flying across the landing pad and sprawled out, unconscious. Smiley soon reached Isaiah and Jules, relief coloring their faces as their friend was returned to them.

“Hey, guys! So happy to see you…” Yorra said, clearly still stoned out of her mind. Smiley walked over to Buttons as the Incineroar returned, handing her gently over. “Buttons! I missed you~!”

“Roar…” Buttons held Yorra tight to his chest, nuzzling her affectionately with his nose.

“Good to see you too, Yorry. Why don’t you take a nap until this is all done?” Isaiah said, giving a gentle smile.

“Yeah, we’ll go on that little vacation you mentioned!” Jules gave a thumbs up.

“That… sounds nice…” Yorra dug her face into Buttons’ mane, eyes closed. “I haven’t cuddled with Buttons… in a while….” She seemed to fall asleep quite easily, bringing relief to both Jules and Isaiah. 

“Such children.” Isaiah and Jules dropped their smiles, turning heated glares back up at the seemingly unhinged Dorado. “So you came here, knocking on my door and killing my men just to get _that_ tramp? What kind of morons are you?!”

Dorado’s unhinged laughter ended as he returned their glares with his own. “Do you even _realize_ what attacking me means?! The kind of **hell** you pathetic brats are about to bring on yourselves?! The Jagger name can only protect you from so much! But once word gets out, there will be NO place for you to hide! Either of you!” 

Isaiah shared a look with Jules, who smirked at him before looking back at Dorado. “Maybe you’re right, Dorado. But you know…” She stuck out her tongue and gave a sharp thumbs down. “At least you’ll be dead before _any_ of that shit happens!”

Dorado stiffened, sweat and rain glistening off his skin. His hands trembled as he felt fear. He did his best to toss it aside, reaching for the rest of the pokeballs on his belt. “I won’t be killed by a couple of brats!”

He called forth the remainder of his Pokemon, his Muk, Veneno, at the lead. “I’ll bury your tall friend here Jules, and then I’ll turn you into my little mistress! You and Yorra will spend the rest of your foreseeable lives sucking my cock!”

“Man~. He really is every bit of the piece of shit you think he is and more, huh?” Isaiah scoffed, unimpressed by Dorado’s words or Pokemon. “Well, that’s fine. It’s gonna make every second of beating his skull in that much more enjoyable.” 

“No kiddin’.” holding up her hand and pointing forward, Fluffers took the lead of her team. “Go and get ‘em, guys!”

“Luga! Earthquake!” Isaiah ordered, his Swampert roaring as it slammed its fists into the ground and shook the entire area. It stumbled all of Dorado’s team save for his Naganadel which hovered above the ground. It charged forward to take a shot at Luga, but was swiftly jumped on by Fluffers, who blasted it with a Dragon Pulse. 

From there, a full on fight broke out between Dorado’s team and the entirety of Jules and Isaiah’s team. Smoke and gas began to cover the field from the sheer intensity. Dorado was no fool though, he could see that the numbers and ferocious power of their pokemon would soon overwhelm his own. 

_I have to get out of here._ He took several slow steps back, turning around to look at the emergency exit below the landing pad. _Let the chaos rage while I-_

“You weren’t thinking of running now, were you?”

Dorado’s eyes bulged as he looked back, Isaiah and Jules bursting through the smoke. He soon had his jaw rocked by a dizzying punch from Isaiah, sent stumbling backward for the second time that day before landing on his ass. “GAGH!” 

“What, you thought we came here for a pokemon battle?” Isaiah snarled, hand wrapped fists tightening as he stood over the E4 member. “Nah. We came here to _fucking_ murder you. Now get the fuck up!”

“You…” Dorado massaged his aching jaw, fear and rage building up in his core. “You brats want a fight? Then you got it!” Dorado drew out a needle from his jacket, quickly injecting it into his arm. Isaiah widened his eyes, quickly throwing a kick and breaking the needle. But Dorado had already injected it. 

“Hehe-hehehe…” Dorado slowly cackled as his muscles began to rapidly expand. He almost looked on the verge of exploding, causing Isaiah and Jules to back up in pure awe and disgust. “You had your chance… now I’m going to strangle the life out of you both!” 

Dorado charged them, catching both off guard as he wrapped his arm around their waists and picked them off the ground. He did his best to ignore the thudding shots of both Jules and Isaiah, slamming them with great force back into the ground. 

“I’ll start with you!” He snarled, wrapping his hands around Isaiah’s throat and attempting to choke the life out of him. “I was going to make you watch as I fucked Jules silly, but I’ll settle for killing you now!” 

“Let him go!” Jules threw a hard knee into the side of his head, but the drugs were numbing the pain. Even as she wrapped her arms around his neck, the muscles made it difficult to choke him. 

“Don’t worry, nina~! You’re next!” Dorado cackled, hoping to see the life drain from Isaiah’s face. But instead what he got was a face full of rage, teeth gritting as Isaiah struggled against his grip. But instead of trying to break his grasp on his neck, Isaiah immediately shot his thumbs into Dorado’s eyes. 

The numbing effect of his drugs only worked for the overall body. It did nothing to stop the pain of getting one's eyes gouged. 

**“GAAAGH!”** Dorado was forced to withdraw his hands, attempting to pull Isaiah’s hands away from his face. Isaiah removed his hands, but Dorado was soon met with a dizzying headbutt instead. The numbness was beginning to fade as his weak spots were exploited, falling back as Jules let him go to get in a better position to strike. Isaiah managed to get to his feet, cocking an arm back.

“Take all the fuckin’ drugs you want, asshole! They’re not gonna save you from us!” Isaiah snarled, waiting for Dorado to recover to his feet. 

Blood trailed down from his eye sockets but he could see, albeit barely. “You fuckin-” Just as he got back up, Isaiah rushed in with a rising upper cut. Jules flipped through the air and landed a kick in sync, the two nearly broke Dorado’s neck with a combined chin-head strike. 

Dorado fell to his knees, the combined attack taking away the last bit of numbness that the drugs gave. He was now feeling every devastating shot they could deliver. 

_I can’t lose… not to some shitty brats… not after ALL I’VE BUILT!_

Dorado made an attempt to throw an overhand right. Isaiah framed off his shoulders with his hands though, causing the punch to miss right before delivering a knee to his jaw that made Dorado black out for a second. 

He was only woken up by the follow up kick that Jules delivered right after. He was sent stumbling back, his jaw broken or dislocated. He would have wailed in pain normally, but his survival instinct made him put up his guard. It was a good thing too, because Isaiah slammed his fists into his guard. Dorado felt like someone had taken a bat to his forearms, and could only shell up as Isaiah continued to pound on his arms to make him open up.

Jules got him to drop his guard by delivering a swift hook to his kidney, causing him to buckle over. That little moment was enough for Isaiah to jump on and slam a rising elbow into his nose, shattering it to pieces. Dorado wailed in agony, holding his broken face as he fell back on the ground. 

“GYOU FUGGIN’ GRATS! GILL PHUGGI-” Isaiah stamped his foot on his stomach hard enough to fracture his ribs, shutting Dorado up as he let out a small squeal.

“I gotta admit… you really are all show and no substance.” Isaiah huffed, leaning his weight on the leg crushing Dorado’s midsection. “I was expecting a bit more from a member of the E4.”

“I knew he’d been pathetic. After Didier broke his nose, any illusion of a ‘tough guy’ left my mind.” Jules spat, arms crossed as she regarded the broken man with little respect.

“Pathetic… Diss-gah...pointing..?” Dorado mumbled through ground teeth as he lowered his hands. “Y-You brats… couldn’t begin to understand what I’ve achieved… What I _am_ …”

“What you _are_ is scum.” Isaiah’s voice fell an octave, taking his foot off his stomach and crouching low next to his head. “And everything you built up will fall to pieces. No one’s gonna remember you. No one’s gonna miss you. And just as one last reminder before we send you to hell?” Isaiah smirked. “You got all your achievements tossed in the trash… by a couple of angry brats.”

Dorado nearly choked on his blood, his red eyes glaring up at Isaiah. In one last show of resistance, he attempted to sneak a knife from out of his waistband,hoping to stab Isaiah in the throat.

But Isaiah seemed to be anticipating it, catching his arm before he could plunge it in. Dorado struggled to move his arm, his vision trembling as Isaiah slowly began to turn the gripped knife away from himself and towardo Dorado.

“Thanks. We’ll be happy to use that. Jules?” As Dorado tried to struggle against Isaiah’s strength, his resistance became futile as Jules leaned over from the other side, supporting Isaiah’s grip and pushing the knife down with him. 

“W-Wait, plea-” His cries fell on deaf ears as Jules and Isaiah plunged the knife into his throat, blood spilling from the wound and spouting from his mouth. Dorado’s body convulsed for a few moments, Isaiah and Jules backing up to watch his final, pathetic moments of life. Soon, he stopped twitching and his eyes glazed over. The color drained from his face and his entire body went limp. 

Isaiah and Jules took a seat on the wet ground, breathing out in relief. The rain had finally stopped and the sun was coming out. They spared a small look back at their pokemon to make sure all was well. But it looked like now that Dorado was dead, his remaining pokemon were already beginning to run. 

Isaiah took a deep breath, fishing out his pack of cigarettes and popping one in his mouth. They were crooked and nearly broken from all the action, but he didn’t seem to care much.

“Shit… I forgot my lighter.” Isaiah sighed, looking at Jules. “You wouldn’t happen to have one would you?”

“Sure.” Jules leaned over to him.

“Than-” Jules grabbed the cigarette and the pack, throwing them away from Isaiah. He watched where they flew off in disappointment before turning to her. “Dude.”

“Those are bad for you.” She snickered, giving him a sharp toothed smile. Isaiah was about to complain, but Jules elected to lean on his shoulder, making him pause. He let out a deep breath and relented, the two taking a well earned rest.

* * *

It had been an agonizing couple of days for Yorra. And a great withdrawal from Mythril had constantly driven her mad. But much like Meth, Mythril only took a few days to leave the system.

On the fourth day, Yorra woke up from what felt like a bad hangover. She felt weak and deprived of fluids, her throat coarse and dry. As she stirred, she took in her surroundings, what looked like a small room at the back of an RV concealed by a curtain.

_Where… am I?_ Yorra mused, slowly sitting up in the bed and running a hand over her face.

But like a freight train, memories started to rush back. Her head began to ache, and she recalled it all. Finding the secret Mythril lab in the lower part of the hospital she was interning at. Getting caught by the guards and being brought directly to Dorado. Then she recalled when they first started injecting her with Mythril and she became his… plaything.

Yorra wanted to throw up as she recalled the dark times she experienced. Being away from her friends and pokemon for so long. She trembled for a moment, wondering what sick plans were ahead of her now.

But then, in a small flash, she recalled seeing Buttons again. And Isaiah, and Jules. They had come for her. Was that all some drug induced dream? Some small part of her clinging to hope? _No… there’s no way…_ she told herself, doubt and fear overcoming her. _Dorado’s too powerful. There’s no way they-_

“Inciner..?” Yorra snapped her head up, looking at the curtain. Her jaw dropped as she saw Buttons pop his head through, eyes brimming with hope.

“Buttons?”

“Growr!” Buttons burst through the curtain, quickly glomping Yorra and picking her up in his arms. 

_Is… Is this real?_ Yorra’s hand trembled as she slowly dug it into his fur, eyes swelling with tears. _He’s actually here… holding me…_

“Buttons… Buttons…” Yorra sobbed, digging her face into his mane. “You’re here…”

“Growr…” He rumbled affectionately, giving her a small lick on head. Yorra giggled in spite of herself, looking up and kissing him on the nose. Buttons turned them around and walked through the curtain, the light temporarily blinding her as her eyes adjusted.

“Hey, look who’s up!” Once her vision focused back in, Yorra’s mouth fell open when she saw a brimming Jules walking up to her and Buttons, and shortly behind her came Isaiah. 

“Guys…”

“Hey, Yorry. You feelin’ okay?” Isaiah asked, his voice soft as he and Jules stood around her. 

Buttons put her on the ground to stand on her own. Yorra stumbled slightly but Jules quickly caught her in her arms. “Careful, there. You’ve been through a lot. Take it slow.”

“You guys…” Yorra mumbled, looking up at them again as her voice rasped. “You came for me..?”

“Of course we did, Yorry. You think we’d leave you with that shithead?” Isaiah asked, smiling as he rubbed her back gently.

“B-But Dorado…” Yorra trembled at the thought of her captor, but saw the reassuring smiles of her friends.

“You don’t gotta worry about him anymore! It’s all taken care of!” Jules grinned brightly, rubbing her shoulder. “Seriously though, he… can’t hurt you now.”

“She’s right. You’re free.” Isaiah nodded, arms crossed over his chest.

“You guys…” Yorra choked up, her emotions overwhelming her. She wrapped an arm around Jules back and reached for Isaiah. He leaned into her hug, allowing her to cling onto them both for dear life. “You better be real… This better be real…”

“It is. You’re safe now.” Isaiah’s voice nearly cracked, and she could hear the tears in his voice as they both wrapped her up in a hug. Yorra let out a soft sob, collapsing in their arms. Isaiah and Jules held her tight, the three kneeling on the ground together as they brought Yorra comfort and safety that she had thought long gone for months.

It was a long time before the four (including Buttons) broke the embrace, Isaiah the first up and offering a hand to Yorra to help her stand. “So, hungry? You can’t eat too heavily right now but we’ve got some things for you to nibble on.”

“That sounds great.” Yorra smiled, taking a seat in the nearby RV couch. “So.. where are we right now?”

“Right now? We’re on the road.” Isaiah said, walking over to the microwave and pulling a wrapped plate out and placing it in front of Yorra. “We uh… might be on the road for a while, too. We did kinda kill Dorado and all his men as well as burn down his mansion.”

Yorra blinked, brows raising in surprise. “Wow… you weren’t kidding when you said he wasn’t going to hurt me anymore.”

“Oh yeah, he’s toast.” Jules snickered, taking a seat across from Yorra. 

“Yup. So now we’re pretty much on the run now.” Isaiah admitted, leaning back against the RV counter. “Jules and I can’t go home, not for a while. But you… no one knows that Dorado had you except his closest men. You can go home with Buttons.”

“What..?” Yorra mumbled, eyes widening. “But that means… you guys won’t-”

“Uh, actually, about that…” Jules coughed, drawing attention to her. “So~, you know how I said I had a surprise to share for when Yorrs woke up?”

“Yeah..?” Isaiah raised a brow.

“So yeah…I had this idea a couple days ago and I kinda called my pops and let ‘em know what went down.” Jules rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. 

“I told you not to call anyone!” Isaiah complained, exasperated.

“I know, I know, but I did it through a payphone so it’s all cool!” Jules waved her arms. Isaiah looked hesitant and crossed her arms as he waited for her to explain. “But it’s okay! I told my pops what went on so he and Didier traveled to his estate on an ‘anonymous tip’ with an investigation crew. And uh… they kinda made sure we’re in the clear.”

Isaiah blinked, sharing a glance with Yorra. “How so?”

“So, we kinda killed everyone at the place, right?”

“Don’t remind me. The plan was just to kill Dorado but it went down like that…” Isaiah coughed, looking somewhat uncomfortable.

“Well, it kinda worked in our favor. Pops and Didier made’ sure that there’s no evidence left of us bein’ there. Plus that EMP you had Magnezone messin’ the place up with scrambled a lot of their footage and electronics!”

“... so your pops and Didier cleaned up the scene…”

“Yup!”

_The day before…_

“Ah, Mr. Jagger! I found something!”

Will Jagger, former Champion of Kalos, walked over to the monitor that one of the investigators was looking at, Didier close behind them. “What is it?”

“Most of the footage was scrambled during the attack, but there’s a little bit that was salvageable. Shall we watch it?” 

“Let me see.” Will said, scooting the investigator over. “HIYA!” Without a second thought, he punched his fist through the monitor. 

“S-Sir-”

“Doesn’t look like anything was recoverable.” Will Jagger folded his arms behind his back, maintaining a calm visage. “You can proceed to look elsewhere, detective.”

“Y-Yes sir!” The man awkwardly shuffled off as Will stood stock still. 

“How’s your hand, old man?” Didier said with a knowing look on his face.

“Perfectly fine! You think a dragon can’t handle that much?” Will huffed as he massaged his bruised hand behind his back.

_Now…_

“So, yeah… My pops texted me that we’re all clear! Aside from some small stuff, ain’t no indication we were even there!” Jules said, grinning ear to ear and laughing. “He says it’s best if we stay on the road for a couple weeks, but to consider it like a road trip vacation!”

Isaiah’s mouth was agape, blinking as he stared at Jules dumbfounded.

Yorra started to giggle, covering her mouth with one hand. “Yeah, that sounds about right. Their family does still have that kind of influence.”

Isaiah looked at Yorra before looking back at Isaiah. “Are you kiddin’ me? I literally prepared _everything_ like we’d never come home!” 

“Well, that’s good! At least you were prepared, right?”

“No, I mean _everything._ I sold my house!” Isaiah exclaimed, causing Jules to stiffen. “I literally used part of the money I got from it to buy this RV!”

“Oh… um…” Jules began to sweat, laughing nervously. “M-Maybe you can buy it back?”

“... Yeah, that’s not that easy.” Isaiah groaned, leaning his face in his hands. Yorra rubbed his back comfortingly while Jules sputtered.

“W-Well, hey! Don’t worry too much about it! We were gonna need this thing for the next couple weeks anyways!” Jules tried to reassure, grinning awkwardly. “So it all works out!”

Isaiah took a deep breath and dragged his hands out of his face. “Yeah, I guess…”

“Oh, don’t worry, Sai. You can stay at my place once we get home.” Yorra chuckled in amusement.

“Gee, thanks…”

“F-Forget all that now! Look on the bright side!” Jules tried to wave it off. “We can go home soon! So let’s take my pop’s advice and treat this like a vacation on the road!”

“I definitely could use one.” Yorra encouraged, deciding to try and cheer him up. Isaiah looked at the girls and sighed, nodding in acceptance.

“Yeah, you’re right. Let’s forget all that and do some travelin’.” Isaiah stood up and moved to the driver seat, starting the engine. “Any ideas for where to start?”

“I definitely wanna head to the coast!” Jules said first before looking at Yorra. “What about you?”

“Uh… I’m okay with anywhere so long as we’re together.” Yorra rubbed her neck shyly, unsure if she had any ideas.

“Alright, then. We’ll start with the coast!” Isaiah said, beginning to drive them out. “After that, we’ll make Yorry pick the next spot.”

“Hey!” Yorra complained, but relented with a small smile. “Fine… I guess I can come up with something.”

“Hell yeah! This is gonna be the best road trip!”

“Yeah! Who knew murder would pay off so well, huh?”

“... dude.”

“What, too soon?” 

Yorra just let out a boisterous laugh, hunching over in her seat. She laughed so hard that tears started to form. Or perhaps she was just so happy to be with her friends again like this, that she couldn’t suppress her mirth. Either way, she was just happy that this wasn’t a dream.

**The End**   
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this little chapter was spurned by the image shown in this story. Nyaantcha imagined a bad end for Yorra that wasn’t canon to her story, but it made me want to rewrite that bad end into a good regardless XD 
> 
> It was rather satisfying to have Isaiah and Jules stomp Dorado out. He’s definitely one of the biggest pricks in the Zirca region, though even with what I’ve written I wouldn’t say he’s the biggest one either. I’m definitely looking forward to writing more for this interesting region crafted by Nyaantcha! 
> 
> Well, I hope you all enjoyed! Please leave a review and a kudos if you liked it! 


	4. Origins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first meeting between Isaiah and Yorra, and how the two became friends.

Origins

“You bitch! Why did you go and tell her?!”

Yorra released as big of a yawn as she could muster, looking at the jock, Billy Thorn, looming close by. She knew she should have left the school grounds faster after dropping that bomb on Kelly Schrier earlier that day.

“Why? Why do you think?” Yorra tilted her head as she looked at him like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “Because your bitch girlfriend was talking shit about me.”

“S-So you tell her that we fucked?!”

“It was more about shutting a bitch up who thinks they got it made.” Yorra drew her eyes back to her nails, showing as little interest in his complaints as possible. “Clearly she doesn’t if her man can’t keep it in his pants after a little flirting.”

“You bitch! You used me to get at her?!” Billy stomped in front of her, imposing his size to try and seem intimidating.

“Careful, now Billy.” Yorra’s hand rested on her pokeball belt. One little press, and Buttons would be eating Billy for lunch. “You can blame yourself for how things turned out. I asked you to keep her in line if she tried to keep at it, but she’s got you too pussywhipped to even speak up, apparently.”

He seemed ignorant to her actions, slamming a hand into the locker behind her. Not that Yorra would flinch away from this dipshit. “You bitch… you ruined our entire relationship…”

“Oh, I’m sorry, did I force you to stick your dick in me?” Yorra asked, brow raised as she got back in his face. “Why don’t you be a real man for once in your life and own up for your own fuck ups?”

“Fuck you!” Billy raised his hand to strike her. Yorra’s fingers flickered over Button’s pokeball.

But both were brought to a pause when his arm was caught from behind. Yorra blinked, looking past Billy to see a looming giant of a man, at least 6’5, keeping a death grip on his arm. He was dark skinned, similar to Jules but a somewhat different tone. He wore a white full-zip hoodie with an Eight Limb Tiger Style patch stitched in the chest. He was also built like a truck, bigger than Billy for sure.

Yorra had seen him on campus several times, but they didn’t have any classes together. He had a reputation for being a secret hot head, apparently having maimed several kids in high school. She wasn’t sure how that followed the guy to college, but it did mean that most kept their distance. 

“I-Isaiah?” Billy seemed fully aware of who he was, his fury suddenly subsiding as the larger teen tossed his arm to the side.

“I gotta say, Billy. Girl’s got a point,” the now named Isaiah kept an amused smile as he stuffed his hands into his hoodie pockets. “Don’t get mad at her because you couldn’t keep it in your pants.” 

Billy visibly gulped, making it clear that he was intimidated by the larger man. Isaiah subtly stepped in front of Yorra, putting his massive frame in front of her. 

“You can take off. I’ll make sure Billy here chills out.” Isaiah suggested, but Yorra scoffed.

“Oh, don’t mind me. Continue.” 

Isaiah chuckled, eyes still on Billy. “If you say so.”

“This has nothin’ to do with you, Tua.” Billy seemed to find what courage he could, trying to step up to Isaiah. But it was clear by the distance he kept between them that he wasn’t too keen on getting close. “She ruined my relationship.”

“Yeah, I heard. Sounds more like  _ you  _ did that buddy.” Isaiah scoffed, casually twisting his own neck a bit to let out a loud crack. “So do yourself a favor and take that L peacefully… and go home.” 

Billy’s hand balled into a fist as it shook at his side. “Don’t do it, Billy. I promise you won’t like where this goes if you throw on me.”

Yorra smirked, watching as Billy retreated, taking a step back and loosening his grip. She had to admit it was a bit amusing to see a man disable another with just his intimidating size and reputation alone. 

_ I can do that, but I usually have to battle to do it. _

Billy looked like a scared pup, aiming whatever last bit of venom he had at Yorra, pointing at her. “This isn’t over.”

“Oh, it is Billy. Because if I see you come up on her during school, or hear you did something to her afterwards alongside your goons…” Isaiah drew Billy’s eyes to him, and Yorra could see it. The hidden fire sitting behind his eyes, promising pain. “I will break your knees and ruin  _ any  _ chance of you getting that promising career in football you’ve been going for.” 

Billy shrinked back at first, but he tried to stand tall. “You think the rest of my team will take this? You’ll have all of us after you.” 

Isaiah let out a big laugh at that. “Yeah, I’m sure, Billy. But tell me, what do you think your guys’ are gonna say when you tell them ‘hey, let’s go jump Isaiah Tua!’ How many of them do you think will really help you out?” Isaiah took a step forward, imposing his size once again and making Billy shrink back. “But let's say a few of ‘em get the balls to help you out. Good on them. But let me ask one more thing…” 

Isaiah grabbed his collar and, to Yorra’s surprise, hoisted him up by one hand, shoving his back into the lockers with his feet dangling below. Billy was at least six one with a solid frame. So even Yorra had to admit it was pretty freakish to see him just picked up off the ground like he was nothing. Meanwhile, Billy looked like he was about to piss himself.

“ _ Do you really think I give a shit how many people you come at me with?” _ Isaiah’s voice fell several octaves, and the threat was no longer underlying his words. To Billy, and somewhat to her, Isaiah looked like a beast of a man, ready to rip him limb from limb. “Bring your entire team for all I care. I’ll ruin the school’s fucking season.”

Billy struggled in his grip, eyes wide as an Hoothoot’s as he choked on his words.

“Now, let me hear it before I put you down. Are you and your pals gonna bother poor lil’...” Tua blinked, looking at Yorra in question. “What’s your name?”

“Yorra.” she answered with a smile.

“Thank you. As I was saying, are you and your pals gonna bother poor lil’ Yorra here?” 

Billy shook his head, having trouble mustering up an answer. 

“Speak Billy. Before I make it so you can’t speak at all.” Isaiah gave him a quick rattle to further his point.

“N-No, we won’t.” Billy shook his head furiously as he finally answered.

“Good!” Isaiah dropped him on his ass, taking a step back. “You can go now. You ever wanna hold me to what I said though, feel free to come looking.”

Billy shook as he slowly got up, watching Isaiah carefully as he feared what else he might do. Isaiah pointed with his head toward the exit, and Billy quickly did as bid and took off. Yorra slid into place next to Isaiah, both watching as he ran out of the hall.

“That was fun.” Yorra smiled, turning a sultry smile to Isaiah. “Nice little show you put on.”

“I’m glad someone enjoyed it.” Isaiah answered half-heartedly. Despite the clear promise of pain in his eyes previously, Yorra could see a bit of mild guilt in his face now. It was quickly wiped away when he turned back to Yorra with a curt smile. “Well, I guess it was better than letting him get mauled by whatever pokemon you were edging toward calling out.”

Yorra’s brow furrowed. “You noticed that?”

“Oh, yeah. I mean, I didn’t want him to hit you either, but I also didn’t think the poor guy deserved to be mauled.” Tua picked up a shoulder bag sitting on the ground by the lockers, slinging it on. “What were you about to pull out, anyway?”

“My Incineroar, Buttons.” Yorra crossed her arms behind her back, falling in line next to Isaiah as they began to walk to the opposite exit Billy left from.

“Yikes. And he thought he was gonna have it bad with me.” Isaiah chuckled, stuffing his hands back in his pockets as they walked. 

“Oh yeah, he was about to be kitty chow if you hadn’t stepped in.” Yorra shrugged as they reached the outside, walking toward the parking lot. She spun on her heel, now facing Isaiah with a sultry smile. 

Yorra felt in an ‘appreciative’ mood for his help… if not a little turned on by his ‘macho’ standoff. She placed a hand on her hip and the other on her leg, flaunting her natural assets clear as day. “Still, I do appreciate what you did… It saves me the trouble of having to clean up a mess.”

“You’re welcome. Next time though, try and take your revenge on a bitch some other way, maybe?” Isaiah laughed before walking by and ignoring the hungry look in Yorra’s eyes. “Well, take care. I’m sure you’ll be fine from here on out.”

Yorra blinked, wondering if she needed to make her intentions more evident. She quickly caught up, grasping his hand and causing him to stop. “Don’t run off too quick on me now. I said I appreciate what you did and I meant it…” She gently stroked the top of his hand, hoping he got the message this time. “I’d love to pay you back.”

Isaiah stared down at their hands for a moment, and she noticed that he had slightly tensed up.  _ Is he shy? That’s cute in a big guy like this.  _ But his face was indifferent, eyes almost blank as he stared down at their hands.

“Pay me back, huh...” He mumbled, turning around to face her as he slowly smiled. “Alright. I guess that wouldn’t be so bad.”

“Good to hear.” Yorra purred, glad he was catching on. “So then… your place or mine?”

“Oh, I got a place in mind…”

* * *

“Alright, table’s set up. You wanna go first or should I?”

Yorra had to say, she was a bit disappointed. When the two left school, she thought he was taking her to his place or perhaps a hotel. Instead, Isaiah took her to a local bar. A nice one with several pool tables and dart boards scattered throughout, but it was definitely not where she  _ wanted  _ them to go.

“... You can go first.” She sighed out, relenting to this game he wanted to play.  _ I’ll play one or two then take off.  _ She thought, feeling a little pent up after getting excited only to be shot down. 

“Sounds good to me.” Isaiah stood at the opposite end of the pool table, getting ready to take his first shot. He stopped, holding a finger up. “Hey, I have an idea. How about every time one of us scores, we ask a question?”

Yorra raised a brow, crossing her arms under her chest. While she would typically reject the idea, she felt like getting a little bit of revenge by asking him a few of questions that might not be so easy for him to answer. “Alright. But don’t expect me to answer anything too deep.”

“No problem. It’d be the same for me, too.” Isaiah nodded, leaning over the pool table and breaking up the pyramid. As balls scattered across the surface, a solid red sunk into one of the corners. “Cool. I’m solids. Guess I’ll start.” He stroked his chin, seemingly observing Yorra for a moment.

“What’re you going to college for?”

Yorra quirked a brow. “That’s what you’re starting with?” 

“I figured I’d start light.” Isaiah shrugged, leaning one side on his pool stick.

Yorra rolled her eyes, walking to the other end of the table and preparing to take her shot. “I’m studying to become a doctor.”

“A doctor? That’s… definitely not my first guess. Nice.” Isaiah hummed out. 

“Oh yeah? What would your first guess be?” Yorra asked, eyes narrowed.

“Phlebotomy.” Yorra blinked at how quick he said that, staring at the somewhat pleased face he held. She had to admit though, the idea was funny.

“What? No! Where the hell did you get that idea?!” She laughed, crossing her arms.

“I’ve met a few emo girls who took phlebotomy. Seemed to be a trend with them.” Isaiah admitted, shrugging.

Yorra’s brow furrow, feeling slightly offended. “Who says I’m emo?”

“I dunno, maybe your entire aesthetic choice? Doesn’t help that your primary partner’s a dark type either.” Isaiah snickered, causing Yorra to let out some haughty breaths.

“I’m not emo! I’m just… tired?” Yorra’s eyes shot to the side, unsure what she could actually defend herself with.

“Oh, okay sleepy.” Isaiah chuckled, his amusement somewhat annoying Yorra. She grumbled as she finally took her shot, sinking a stripe ball.

“Alright, my turn. First question: Are you dense?” Yorra asked, eyes half lidded.

“What makes you say that?” He asked, sounding a little offended.

“When I said I wanted to ‘show my appreciation’, I was clearly saying ‘hey, let’s go fuck’. Not let’s go play pool.”

“Man, you didn’t sugarcoat that at all.” Isaiah scoffed before shrugging. “But no, I picked up what you were trying to say. But the point was to do what I wanted, wasn’t it? I’m sorry that what I wanted wasn’t sex.”

“You would rather be playing pool than having hot, rough sex with this fine ass?” Yorra slapped her butt for emphasis.

“Dude, there’s other people around.” Isaiah laughed sheepishly, looking around as some onlookers stared at Isaiah like he was an idiot. “Don’t mind us…She’s just a little drunk.” 

“I’ve had one drink.” Yorra emphasized by holding up her bottle. “I’m just a little disappointed.” 

“Well, I’m sorry to disappoint. I just haven’t been able to play pool with someone else in a long time.” Isaiah defended, holding his hands up as he walked over to position for his next shot.

“Really? I figure a guy like you has plenty of friends to play pool with.” Yorra scoffed, doubtful of his words.

“It’s true. Hard to make friends when you got a big sign screaming ‘violent’ hangin’ from your neck.” Isaiah casually shrugged as he leaned over the table, taking aim for his next shot. It bounced against the wall and was close to sinking, but just missed the hole. “Damn.”

“My turn.” Yorra rounded the table, taking aim and sinking another stripe. “Sweet. Alright, next question: are you gay?”

Isaiah chuckled. “No.” 

“... Are you a virgin?”

“Ah-ah, save it for your next question.” Isaiah shook his head. Yorra huffed before taking aim for another shot. She missed this time, causing her to grumble. 

“Alright, comeback time.” Isaiah skipped around the table, positioning for a shot. Eyes focused and shot lined up, he sunk another ball. “Yes! Back to even!” He chuckled, giving a little dance.

_ … He’s a big goof.  _ Yorra rolled her eyes, a little amused.  _ A dangerous goof, but a goof.  _

“Alright, what’s your question.”

Isaiah cleared his throat, eyes narrowing as he seemed to think on it. “Alright… what’s your favorite anime?”

Yorra scoffed. “What makes you think I watch anime?”

“You’re an anime girl. I can tell.” Isaiah snickered, grinning ear to ear. “Come on, no shame in sharing.”

“Tch… big assumption to make…” Yorra stubbornly clicked her tongue, turning her head away.

“Alright, I’ll take a shot in the dark. Full Metal Alchemist,” Isaiah threw out.

“That’s like cheating. FMA could be anyone’s favorite,” Yorra scoffed.

“AHA! You do watch anime!” Yorra winced as she realized how easily she gave herself away. “Now you pretty much have to tell me. Accept your defeat.”

“Damn you…” Yorra sighed, looking to the side. “... Inuyasha.”

Isaiah started to give a snarky little giggle, looking far too pleased with himself. “Oh hohoho~! Fan of the classic ‘will they/won’t they’ eh? I respect it. Even if the anime literally spent years trying to get them to do the most basic shit.”

“I-It’s part of the charm!” Yorra found herself defending, narrowing her eyes. “Alright, I fessed up. What’s yours?”

“Me? Oh I hate anime.” Isaiah waved off before laughing. “Kidding, of course. But that’s a hard one…”

“Nah, I bet I can call yours easy.” Yorra stuck her chest out, arms crossed as she gave it some thought. “... Hajime no Ippo.”

“Damn, you think I’m some filthy sports anime watcher?” Isaiah put a hand on his chest in mock offense. “How dare you be so right!”

Yorra snickered, her turn to feel pleased. “You look like the kinda guy who’s into combat sports and shounen anime, if anything.”

“Okay, I’m feeling so called out right now. I’d appreciate it if you chilled,” Isaiah huffed jokingly, grabbing his beer and taking a sip. He took a lazy shot for his next play, missing it badly. “Alright, your turn.”

“Okay…” Yorra picked up her cue stick, walking around the table and sinking another ball. “Alright. So, back to my previous question: are you a virgin?”

“Are we still on that question?” Isaiah sighed, sounding disappointed.

“Color me curious. Besides, you get to ask embarrassing questions, so do I.” Yorra shrugged, leaning back on the pool table as she waited expectantly.

“Mine weren’t quite the same, but fine…” Isaiah rolled his eyes, gaze trailing away from Yorra. His expression became somber and his lips thinned into a line. “No. No I’m not.”

“Really?” Yorra tilted her head to one side. “You don’t sound too pleased about it.”

Isaiah brought his gaze back to Yorra, giving a reluctant smile. “I just don’t really care to talk about it. It was whatever to me.”

Yorra tried to gauge his reaction, a little surprised to see how disinterested in the topic he was. “I see. You sure it wasn’t because you had a bad partner?”

“Who knows. Maybe it was them. Maybe it was me.” Isaiah shrugged, avoiding the topic all together. “You gonna take your next shot?”

Yorra quirked a brow, but did as she was bid. She missed her shot, allowing Isaiah to take his shot again and this time scoring. “Alright, what now?”

Isaiah leaned on his pool cue again. “What do you typically do for fun?”

“Usually pick up guys and get a good-”

“I mean BESIDES that! Geez,” Isaiah laughed, shaking his head. “Like a hobby.”

“Oh. I like to skateboard a lot. Sometimes I’ll even have Buttons pull me around by the leash if I’m feeling lazy enough.” Yorra earned a somewhat impressed look from the tall man.

“Skating, huh? That’s actually kinda surprising. Nice.” Isaiah nodded his head, looking somewhat sheepish. “I tried it myself a lot as a kid. Ate the pavement one too many times and said fuck it. I always felt like the boards were too small for me, anyway”

“Huh. What a shame. It’d be funny to see you skating around. You’re bigger than most, if not all, skaters I’ve met.” Yorra snorted.

“Well, I certainly wouldn’t be doing 360 spins even if I stuck to it,” he laughed. “I’d be happy if I could just ride the thing without eating the sidewalk every five seconds.” 

“Come on, the pain is part of the learning process! Once you hit your groove, you’re sailing on the concrete waves.” Yorra spread her arms wide eagle, imagining a little bit of her more glorious moments. She suddenly gave him a mischievous smirk. “I didn’t think you’d be the kind to wimp out because of a couple boo-boos. Did the big baby need some bandaids?”

“It was more than a few booboos! When a big ol’ kid like I was hits the ground, we don’t fall gracefully like some of you smaller people,” Isaiah defended, crossing his arms and narrowing his eyes. “We hit the ground like trees, damn it. “

Yorra snorted again, imagining the mountain of a man in front of her eating pavement. As she stood there, hunched over with laughter, something occurred to her: she was having fun. Something she barely got unless she was out with Jules. But the realization brought with it caution and suspicious as a single thought crept in her mind.

_ He thinks he can weasel his way into a relationship. _

Yorra’s expression darkened, her laughter ceasing as she straightened out. 

“Everything alright?” Isaiah asked, brow raised as he seemed to notice her concern. 

“... Fine.” Yorra answered quietly. She grabbed her pool cue, moving around the table. “I’m taking my shot now.”

“It’s still my…” Yorra silenced him with a quick glare. Isaiah held his hands up in surrender. “Okay~, go right ahead then.”

Yorra didn’t wait for his permission, leaning over the table and sinking a cue ball with strange accuracy. She then quickly turned her darkened expression back to Isaiah. “Alright, fess up now. What is this? What are you trying to do?”

“Excuse me?” Isaiah crossed his arms patiently.

“Are you trying to look like the ‘nice guy’? Trying to get me to drop my guard?” Yorra took a step forward, leering directly into Isaiah’s unshaking eyes. “Because if that’s what this is, you might as well give up now. I’m not so quick to latch onto a guy just because he can give me a couple laughs. Relationships are bullshit to me and I’ve got no interest in them. So tell me, truthfully, what exactly are you trying to accomplish here?”

Isaiah’s face fell into a frown, making it difficult for Yorra to gauge again. His nostrils flared as he took a slow breath in before releasing out his mouth. “Alright. You want the truth? Here it is: I felt we’re a little similar, and thought I’d see if I could make a friend.”

Yorra’s brow furrowed. “How are we anything alike?” 

Isaiah leaned back against the pool table, shrugging. “Well, first off, we’re both kinda outcasts at that school. Nobody talks to us unless they’re looking for something. In your case, an easy romp. In my case… well, even less people talk to me than you, I think.” 

Yorra narrowed her eyes. “That’s…  _ one  _ thing I guess. But that can’t be it.”

“Maybe… just maybe,” Isaiah tapped his bicep as he seemed to struggle with his final answer. “I could tell that… we both had some similar mindsets when it came to… relationships.”

Yorra’s face relaxed, a little surprised by that. “What does that mean.”

“Let’s just say I don’t view relationships as bullshit like you do… BUT I don’t think they’re for me.” Isaiah met her gaze again, trying to clearly convey his words to her. “I’ve got no interest in dating  _ you  _ or anyone else. As for why… I don’t think we know each other well enough just yet for me to wanna say.”

Isaiah pushed off the table, standing straight up and leaning the cue stick on his shoulder. “But I get it. Hard to trust the word of a guy you just met. Especially when guys are typically only looking for one thing. I can personally reassure you that I’m not lookin’ for anything more than a friend in you. But if you can’t trust that, or you got no interest in being friends?” Isaiah shrugged, breathing out. “Then let’s just finish this game of pool and you can go home. How’s that sound?”

Yorra stared at Isaiah for a long moment, quieted by his words. Part of her wanted to doubt his intentions and call his speech a convincing lie. But staring up into his eyes, she could see what he meant: the similarity between them. 

That hint of loneliness behind his dark brown orbs. It was almost like looking in a mirror. 

She finally drew her gaze away, slowly grabbing her cue stick again and moving to the opposite side of the table. Isaiah seemed to wait for her word, but as of now she had nothing to say.

“Well… since we skipped my last turn, I guess I’ll go this time.” Isaiah said, positioning himself on the table and getting ready to take a shot. “We’ll drop the whole question if you want and just finish the game.”

Yorra watched him silently take aim. All the while, her insecurities crawled on her back, urging her to leave or remain silent. But her mind returned to his eyes and that cold loneliness behind them. Something so familiar and painful that… it felt oddly soothing to be around someone who knew that kind of pain. 

She was drawn out of her thoughts when Isaiah finally smacked into the cue ball and sunk another. He silently straightened out, getting ready to take another shot before Yorra found herself speaking:

“So, gonna ask another question?”

Isaiah blinked, turning around to look at her. “You want to keep going with that?”

Yorra rubbed her arm, feeling somewhat shy after speaking. With a short sigh, she gave a nod. “Sure. Why not.”

Isaiah observed her for a short moment before smiling. “Alright, then. Favorite anime opening.”

Yorra scoffed, placing a hand on her hip. “Just because I watch anime, you think I’m all over the OP’s too?”

Isaiah just stared at her with a silent grin of expectation. He was clearly not fooled.

“... Fuck you.” Yorra huffed, turning her head away. “Sorairo Days… oh, and Trust Me is my favorite ED.” 

“You~ basic anime bitch!” Yorra smacked his arm for the teasing, causing him to laugh. “Ow! Kidding, kidding! Those are good picks.”

“Oh yeah, what are yours?” Yorra scoffed, crossing her arms. “My bet’s on Under Star since you’re such an Ippo fan.”

“Funnily enough, I actually don’t care for that OP.” Yorra gasped, eyes wide as plates. “What?”   
  


“How could you disrespect Under Sar like that?! And you call yourself an Ippo fan?!”

“I like how you were gonna give me shit if I did like it, but are now defending how good it is.” 

“Someone has to set their foot down when they hear bad opinions.” Yorra huffed her chest out proudly. 

“Hey, I have good taste in OP’s. Don’t even!” Isaiah scoffed, sticking his tongue out. “I don’t have an exact favorite, but the first one to come to mind would be Rin Rin Hi Hi! Choke on that.”

Yorra took a moment to recognize the name. “The Nanbaka OP?”

“Exactly! Great OP, even if the anime fell off after the first season…” Isaiah trailed off, sounding disappointed.

Yorra narrowed her eyes, giving it some thought. “It was alright… kinda basic.”

“Hey, now…”

“What about your favorite ED?”

“Sugar Song to Bitter Step. No question.” Was his immediate answer, causing Yorra to raise a brow.

“Meh… that one’s okay, but the memes ruined it.” Yorra shrugged, and it was Isaiah’s turn to gasp.

“How  **dare** you! I hated that the memes overshadowed the actual anime and ED. Still kinda sore about it.” He whined, once again causing Yorra to snort. “I loved Kekkai Sensen.”

“Yeah, I liked it too. Still not the best ED, though.” Yorra stuck out her tongue as she moved around him to take a shot.

“Hey, it’s still my turn!”

“Nah, if we’re asking questions, you get too much power. We switch turns after a shot and a question.” Yorra smirked, lining up a shot.

“That’s not how-oh whatever. Be my guest!” Isaiah gave an exaggerated huff. As she was about to take another shot, he spoke once more. “Hey… after this, you wanna play darts?”

Yorra straightened out, looking at the hanging targets against the walls. She once again felt her suspicion rise. But this time, she was quicker to stomp it out.

“Sure, why not. You’re buying our next round of drinks, though.”

“That’s fair. You’re getting your own after that, though.”

_ Just a game or two. Who cares, right?  _

A couple of games turned into several, and several turned into countless. Time escaped them both as they played darts and pool throughout the night and all the way until morning. All the while, they continued to talk and laugh, mostly over meaningless things and subjects. 

Yorra didn’t completely understand the significance at the time, but that night meant the world to Isaiah Tua.

* * *

Several days had passed since Isaiah last saw Yorra. It had been the weekend and so they returned home without having to worry about school for a couple days. But once he returned to college, Isaiah found himself scanning around for the young woman now and then.

_ I wonder if she’s avoiding me?  _ Isaiah thought to himself, feeling somewhat nervous as well as hopeless. He had suspected that might happen once their little night out was over, but it nevertheless disappointed him. The funny thing was, he had been preparing for that from the start, but perhaps her choice to stick around the entire night had made it more difficult to accept. 

As he edged toward the end of the courtyard, Isaiah took one last glance around.  _ No sign of her. _ he took a deep breath, having a moment of acceptance.  _ Well, I guess that’s that. I can’t complain, though. It was a fun night.  _

“Hey, Tua!” 

Isaiah sighed when he heard Billy Thorn’s voice, sparing a glance over his shoulder to see him heading over. With several of his lineman friends trailing close behind him. “I guess some people don’t get the message.”

“You were acting tough, but we’re not gonna let what you did in high school scare us.” Billy snarled as he pulled off his letterman jacket. “You were dealing with some little shits back then. We’re gonna beat your ass into the ground!”

Isaiah showed his frustration with a smirk, dropping his shoulder bag to the ground and pulling off his hoodie so that he was left in a tank top. “Well. I guess if you guys really want to try me…” Isaiah gave a loud crack of his neck, spinning around and swinging his arms out. “You’re welcome to… Oh.”

Isaiah didn’t hesitate at the sight of the few young men getting ready to jump him. What made him hesitate was the giant Incineroar looming behind them.

“Losing your nerve, Tua? I knew you were all… talk…” Billy finally seemed to take notice of what he was staring at, slowly turning around. As he did so, the Incineroar snatched him by the face, picking him up off the ground and holding him there.

“GAAAAGH!”

“H-Holy shit! Billy!” 

Billy’s friends started to freak out but were frozen in place, unable to help their friend in need. All the while, the Incineroar continued to suspend him in the air casually, boredly glancing around at the young men around him.

“Billy, Billy, Billy~. You’re as predictable as your weak dick game.” Isaiah drew his gaze away from them to see Yorra walking over to him, shooting him a smirk. “Sup.”

Isaiah’s jaw slacked, doing a double take from Yorra to Buttons before finally smiling back. “Hey.”

Yorra shifted her smirk to the whining Billy, crossing her arms. “So at this point Billy, you really need to make better life decisions. First you try to muscle on me, now on Sai here? It’s getting ridiculous at this point.”

“Pl-Please p-put me down!” Billy whimpered, legs swinging beneath him.

“Before I do, I just need you to understand something. Buttons?” Yorra’s partner turned Billy around in its hand, making sure he faced Yorra while still being held in the air. “Now listen to me, Billy. You can bitch and whine all you want about losing your girlfriend or shitting your pants with Tua. But listen,”

Yorra’s face morphed into what Isaiah could only describe as soulless, eyes lacking shine or pity as she snatched his balls in a vice grip, as if Buttons wasn’t scaring him enough. “You ever come near  **me** or this big goof Isaiah here…  _ I’ll have Buttons make a chew toy out of your bones.” _

Isaiah’s eyes flared in mild surprise, sparing a look at Buttons. Apparently it liked the idea, licking its chops as it squeezed a little harder on his head.

“We clear, Billy?”

“Yyyeeeeeesss…” Isaiah checked to see if Billy had pissed himself. Somehow, the young man was holding it together. Though perhaps that had something to do with the hand squeezing the life out of his balls.

“Good!” Yorra let go, and nodded for Buttons to do the same. “Remember, Billy, Buttons is a literal click away from mauling you~!”

Billy crawled away to his team who quickly pulled him to his feet and ran off. Buttons let out a rumbling scoff, shifting his gaze over to Isaiah. He narrowed his eyes for a moment before giving a curt nod. Isaiah blinked, unsure what he was supposed to make of that.

“Okay… that was interesting.” Isaiah turned to Yorra and smiled. “Thanks for the save.”

“I’m sure you had it handled. But it was funny.” She shrugged, crossing her arms over her chest. “So, where you headed?”

“Nowhere at the moment. I thought I might go hit the gym again or just chill at home.”

“Sounds like you’ve got nothing better to do. Good, then hold this,” Yorra smirked, reaching into a cloth bag and pulling out a long skateboard. She tossed it to Isaiah, who caught it with a puzzled expression. “Now you can learn to get over your fears.”

Isaiah stared down at the long board before looking back up at Yorra. “N-Nah, I’m good…”

“It’ll be fine! You’re older now so it’ll hurt a lot less.” Yorra grinned mischievously.

“I really don’t wanna eat shit today…” Isaiah whined, looking at the board in fear. “Can’t we just have our pokemon hang out today or something?”

“I mean, you could bring out your partner to hang with us if you like.  _ While  _ you practice.” Yorra snickered, placing a hand on her hip. “Don’t worry, Buttons will help you balance the whole time.”

Isaiah felt a firm, furry paw placed on his shoulder, immediately not liking the image being conveyed in his mind. Isaiah inhaled a deep breath, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Okay… as thanks for your intervention… I will try.”

“Sweet! Let’s stop wasting time and go, then.” Yorra turned around, throwing down her own skateboard and hopping on. “We’ll focus on your balance first.”

Isaiah clicked his tongue but trailed after her. Regardless of how much cement he was about to crash into that day, he couldn’t say he was upset.

And no doubt, he crashed at least ten times that day before learning any semblance of balance while riding. 

**To be continued...**


	5. What we do for Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yorra's dark path that started with Isaiah's battle now comes to a head when she battles Jules Jagger. And Isaiah once again finds himself in the darkest time of his life.

_A year after Yorra met Isaiah..._

" _His procedure should be done now. You can go ahead and visit him."_

" _Thank you." Yorra mumbled as she carried her legs forward. It had been one of the longest couple hours of her life, and the wait to see Isaiah had drilled a pit deep into her gut._

_They had been hitting the town for a typical hangout on what felt like a normal night. But as things progressed, a sense of dread overcame her. Yorra felt a seething gaze watching her as they moved around, and caught brief glimpses of a man following them. But she tried to ignore it, thinking it was all in her mind._

_That was until the man finally approached. Yorra turned to meet him face to face, but was momentarily stunned when she saw who it was: a trainer she had ruthlessly beat down. Someone who's partner Blastoise had one of its canons ripped out of its shell._

_She saw a knife flash in his hands. And for a brief moment she felt as if her sins had finally caught up to her._

_But then she saw Isaiah frantically stretch his arm out to defend her. And the knife cut right into him._

_Yorra watched as he winced in pain, and suddenly felt her spirit return. As the young trainer stared in awe, she slugged him with all the force her arms could muster. She felt his jaw crack and saw several teeth knocked loose. He fell to the ground, and Yorra's body carried her forward, mounting on top of him and following up with a flurry of furious punches. She wasn't normally one to lash out herself so viciously herself, but something carried her forward. And it wasn't until Isaiah had pulled her off with his one good arm that she was forced to stop._

_From there on, police and an ambulance were called, and Isaiah had been carted off to get stitches and possible surgery._

_Yorra finally reached the room, quickly swinging the door open. Isaiah was already sitting up, eyes drifting to her as a small smile stretched across his lips._

" _Hey, Yorry. 'Bout time you got here."_

_Yorra didn't see any signs of anger or pain in his expression, allowing her shoulders to relax somewhat. "Hey…" She walked inside, her eyes trailing to his arm. Gauze was wrapped around the stab wound, and the guilt suddenly weighed in her gut once again. "How… bad was it?"_

" _Not too bad. He cut me deep, but it wasn't anything I won't recover from. A month or two, and it'll just be a scar." Isaiah's voice sounded reassuring, like it was a scrape he got after falling off his skateboard. "How about you? You doing alright?"_

_Yorra scoffed in disbelief, eyes narrowing. "You're really asking_ _**me** _ _if I'm alright? I'm not the one who took a knife to the arm."_

" _Yeah, but… you were the original target for it." Isaiah's lips fell into a frown. "So if… something's on your mind, you can-"_

" _stop it." Yorra huffed, hands shaking at her side as her eyes drifted to the floor. "Don't ever do that again."_

" _... Excuse me?"_

" _If someone guns for me and you can't stop it without throwing yourself in the way? Don't bother." Yorra drew her gaze back up to his eyes, hoping to convey her sternness as plainly as possible. "I'm not going to have you try and act like the cool guy and get killed for shit_ _ **I**_ _did and deserve. You got it?"_

_Isaiah stared at Yorra, his jaw hanging as he seemed to process her words. Yorra rubbed her arm as she realized just how harsh that had come out. She sighed, shaking her head. "Listen, I-"_

" _Fuck you."_

_Yorra blinked, looking back up at Isaiah's face. She was met with a furious glare. "What?"_

" _You heard me._ _ **Fuck. You."**_ _Isaiah repeated, sitting up more in his hospital bed so that they were eye level. "Don't ever ask me to not defend you._ _ **Ever.**_ _Because that's some shit I can't and won't do."_

" _Look at your fucking arm!" Yorra snapped back, teeth gritted. "That happened because of what I-"_

" _I don't give a_ _ **FUCK**_ _why it happened, I will_ _ **always**_ _protect you if I can!" Isaiah snarled back, harsh enough that she took a step back. "So don't come in here tellin' me to not! Because I will fucking die for you if I have to!"_

_Yorra's eyes became owlish, her heart stopping for a moment. Her breath caught in her chest as her entire being trembled._

" _Why…?" She uttered out without thought. "I… I don't deserve to be… why?"_

_Isaiah's brow cocked and he was silent for a moment. He sighed out a breath, hunching over in his seat. "Maybe you don't think you're worth much. But to me, you're family."_

_Yorra's jaw hung open, unable to completely make sense of his words._

" _I don't even know if you feel the same way, but to me? You're my family Yorry. You and Jules." Isaiah continued, his voice soft as his expression lightened. "You mean the world to me. Even with all the bullshit going on and the chip on your shoulder, somewhere along the line you… I ended up seeing you as a sister."_

_Yorra felt her heart pound in her chest again. Despite all of her woes and fears, his word… filled her with a long forgotten happiness. Her vision suddenly became foggy as her emotions began to overwhelm her._

" _So don't ever give up on me, you got it?" Isaiah's words drew her back from her haze, and she could hear the trembling in his voice. His eyes started to mist, and his bottom lip quivered. "I saw you… you hesitated right before he came at you. Like you were just giving into what was about to happen."_

_Isaiah stood from his bed, and Yorra twitched her hands forward. He held his good arm up to stop her. He stood at full length, swallowing a shaky breath. "I know you've done some things you regret. You walk around with that weight every day. But don't ever give in because of it. Don't you fucking do that to yourself or to me. Okay?" Isaiah shook his head as tears slowly trailed down his cheek._

" _I can't lose any more family. I'm not… I'm not that strong."_

_Yorra felt tears fall from her own eyes, choking briefly on her words as she made an attempt to wipe her face. "You can really… call me family?"_

" _Without a second thought."_

_His words stung at Yorra, but at the same time they continued to fill her heart. "Arceus… you're an idiot. Don't you know I'm a fucking mess?" She half joked, letting out a small sob along with a laugh. "Calling me family…"_

" _I think we're both a bit of messes, ain't we?" Isaiah sniffled, walking over and wrapping an arm around her back. "But ain't nothin' wrong with that."_

_Yorra hesitated, but leaned into the embrace, wrapping her arms around his back. "If you say so… bro."_

" _That sounds funny coming from you." Yorra gently slugged him in the stomach,Isaiah's laughter contagious as the two cried and gripped each other tight. But as their emotions settled, a dark thought passed through her mind, his words bringing a grimm reminder that echoed in her ears._

" _I… I have a condition." Yorra wiped her eyes as she pushed off his chest._

" _What's that?"_

" _You're not allowed to die for me." Isaiah's brow cocked, his face becoming conflicted._

" _Yorry, I…"_

" _You're not the only one whose lost family." Yorra declared, her eyes hardening. "If… if you're going to call me that, you have to promise me you won't die trying to act like it. So no dying on me or for me."_

_Isaiah's face twisted with his thoughts as he took a moment to answer. "Alright. That's fair. I'll avoid dying on you, then. I kinda told you to do that too, anyway."_

" _Exactly." Yorra nodded before leaning back in. "So don't."_

" _Understood." Isaiah wrapped his arm around her back, pulling her in and kissing the top of her forehead. "And hey…"_

" _Yeah..?"_

" _That right hook you rocked him with? Helluva shot." Yorra snorted at that, digging her face into his chest. "I'm serious. I was proud as hell."_

" _I had a good teacher, I guess."_

" _Apparently I'm too good of a teacher. Almost beat him to death."_

" _Shut up." They both laughed, and for the first time in a while, Yorra had someone else she could call family. They both did._

* * *

_Goddamn it, Jules._

Isaiah stared numbly up at the television of Survive Bar, the same bar that he and Yorra once frequented together. It was currently on commercial, but the upcoming battle at Yorra's gym was going to be broadcasted live. And much to Isaiah's chagrin, it was Jules who was going to be her opponent.

_Does she really think she can help her like this?_

"You've barely touched your drink."

Isaiah drew his gaze away from the TV to look at the bartender, blinking. "Huh?"

"I was just saying that you've barely touched your drink." The old bartender asked, concern in his voice. "Is everything alright?"

Isaiah took a moment to think over his answer. "No, not really… and it's about to get a lot worse, I think."

The bartender frowned, nodding in understanding. "Your next one will be on the house. Maybe you should drink up and prepare for a long night."

"Good idea." Isaiah scoffed, picking up his whiskey and downing it in one swig. He let out a cough, realizing how strong his drink was.

"Maybe next one don't down so quickly, especially if you're drinking a double."

"Yeah, well…" Isaiah looked toward the voice before doing a double take. "Alana?"

"Hey." A beautiful woman greeted, smiling softly at him. She was 5'7 in height and wore a short cut black dress with the chest split at the center, hiding none of her ample assets from view. She had long flowing red hair, the front bangs covering the right side of her face.

During the months spent apart from Yorra, he had made a new friend in Alana thanks to, oddly enough, Didier Jagger. Isaiah had expected to seldom meet her again, but Alana seemed to take an interest in him, and the two had started to become real friends as far as Isaiah was concerned.

"H-Hey. What are you doing here?" Isaiah asked, turning in his seat to look at her.

"Well, you said you were going to drown your sorrows while this match was going on. I thought you could use some company!" She smirked, sliding into the stool next to him. "Can I have the same as him?"

"Of course. Anything for the Dazzling Queen." The bartender smiled, walking over to Isaiah and leaning in. "You're more impressive than I thought."

"Shut up and get her drink!" Isaiah playfully scoffed, eliciting a chuckle from Alana and the bartender. "That really is just gonna be the reaction every time we hang out, isn't it?"

"Is that so bad?" Alana teased, leaning forward on the bar and cupping her cheek in one hand. "It could be worse. You could have guys glaring at you enviously."

"Not a lot of guys are willing to try that with me. Though I guess your fans might make exceptions." Isaiah laughed, picking up his drink after the bartender set his and Alana's down. "Still, uh… thanks for coming. I wasn't tryin' to bring down your night, but… I appreciate the company."

"I'm happy to join you, really. Though I am sorry that I came a little unannounced, so it's a relief to hear you say that." Alana admitted, holding out her cup to him.

"Well, consider it a welcome surprise." Isaiah tapped his glass against hers, the two taking a sip from their drinks. Isaiah took a breath before looking back up at the television, lips thinning. "It's all downhill from here, though."

"You really think she'll go that hard on her?" Alana asked, sounding concerned.

"It's either A: She goes as hard or even harder on her than she did me, or B. She lightens up because of what happened with me." Isaiah sighed, finger tapping the top of his glass. "But considering her spot as a gym leader is at stake, I doubt it's gonna be B."

"You weren't wrong about this being a long night." Alana took another sip from her drink, leaning on both elbows. "Are you really sure you want to stick around to watch this?"

"I have to." Isaiah clenched his jaw, the sinking feeling in his gut never leaving. "Depending on what happens with this, I'll know whether or not I can finally let go and forgive Yorry yet."

"I see. So either way, you're planning to forgive her, you just want to know if it's now or later?" Alana speculated.

"Somethin' like that." Isaiah shrugged. "I couldn't just forgive her immediately, but I… I'd like to." he admitted, taking another sip from his drink. "But she's gotten worse since we stopped talking. She's been going out of her way to cripple people's pokemon worse than before."

"I'd heard she was always like that, though." Alana said, her visible brow raising. "What's different now?"

"Well… it's true she was always rough. But after some things happened a couple years back, she started to chill out a little." Isaiah once again massaged the scar on his arm. "Instead of maiming pokemon, she was just hurting them enough to send a message but nowhere near this bad. In fact, as time went on, I thought she was… ready to stop all that. Shows what I fuckin' know."

Isaiah took another drink, this time downing his entire cup. Alana did the same, smacking her lips. "When you put it like that, it almost sounds like you blame yourself for what she's doing."

"I kinda do." Isaiah's lips thinned as he answered. "I mean, I'm not responsible for what she does, but… I certainly didn't help."

"That shouldn't be something you have to feel guilty for." Alana sighed, frowning. "I'm sorry. I came here to try and cheer you up a bit. I'm not doing a great job, am I?"

"Heh, nah, it's not your fault. I don't think there's much you can do that would make me feel better." Isaiah admitted as he pushed his cup forward. "I'll just take a beer, now."

"I'll take a whiskey and coke." Alana asked, turning around in her seat to lean her back against the bar, crossing her leg over the other. "So… maybe this isn't the right time to ask, but I've been curious for a while… if you don't mind me asking something personal, of course."

"Hey, feel free. I've already spilled a bit of my guts as is." Isaiah nodded in approval, sipping on the beer the bartender set in front of him.

"Alright, then. Here it goes…" Alana tried to look casual despite the minor fidgeting in her seat as she grabbed her own drink. "Are you in love with Yorra?"

Isaiah snorted at the question, a small smirk playing at the edge of his lips. "I was wondering when that question was gonna pop up."

"I take it you've been asked pretty often?" Alana tried to hide her nervousness with a laugh, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Yeah. More than you think." Isaiah flashed his brow before shaking his head. "And no, I'm not. There's no 'me and Yorry' or 'us' as far as being an item goes. We're… close on a different level. I'm sure you heard me call Jules a sister, and Yorry's the same way. Or was… clearly it's a little complicated right now due to current circumstances-but you get what I mean."

"I see… Hm." Alana hummed, looking somewhat pleased as she tried to suppress a smile. "Good to know. I could tell how real that was between you and Jules, so I don't doubt that it's the same with her."

"Exactly. It doesn't go deeper than that. To some people it might seem odd or complicated, but it's pretty simple to me." Isaiah shrugged as he sipped his drink again. "We both… found each other in a dark time in our lives. Regardless of how things are right now, I…"

" _I hope you're ready, ladies and gentleman! The battle is about to begin!"_

Isaiah didn't finish the thought, his expression darkening as he saw both Jules and Yorra take their places on the stage. "Here we go…" Isaiah mumbled, taking a large swig of his beer. Alana shot him a concerned look, extending a hand and gently rubbing his shoulder.

The battle started out rough, for sure. Yorra was fending off Jules more aggressive approach well, but Jules was deceptively clever when she wanted to be, especially in a pokemon battle. Yorra started soft, similar to how she had with Isaiah. So it was all the more concerning when Isaiah could see the frustration building with each pokemon that fell.

And then, Maxima was called out. The mere sight of the towering Tyranitar was enough to make Isaiah clench his fist and tighten his jaw. He could feel Alana's gaze hovering over him in concern, but he was too laser focused on the screen. Yorra's next move would be the true deciding factor for Isaiah and how he would approach her in the coming days.

At least, they should have been. But then all hell broke loose.

" _Maxima, stop! What are you doing?!"_

" _Uh oh! It seems that the gym leader has lost control of her pokemon! What could happen now?!"_

Isaiah's brow hardened, and he could see the panic on Yorra's face. Maxima was howling like a wild beast, and the field was morphing with its quivering might. Its eyes were red and it was an eerily familiar sight to Isaiah. It's exactly how Maxima looked when it had crushed Lizzie under a rock.

But there was clearly something off. Maxima wasn't just ignoring Yorra, it was still raging on. It had blasted Fluffers away with a powerful Stone Edge, and that should have been the end of it. But then it started to stalk forward, and Jules screamed for Yorra to call it off. The camera began to shake as Maxima stamped its foot into the ground and using Earthquake.

Isaiah and Alana heard their drinks suddenly shake, soon followed by the bar's lights and shelved bottles. Isaiah stood to his feet as he looked around in confusion.

"W-We're not that close to the gym… how powerful was that..?" Alana mumbled.

"I don't…" Isaiah's eyes flashed in fear when he looked back up at the screen. The Earthquake was so violent that spikes of earth sprouted throughout the stadium. The attending crowd and the announcer were screaming and panicking, scattering throughout.

And as the camera continued to shake, Isaiah saw the spikes begin to head for Jules. But in the final shot, he could see Yorra shove her out of the way.

The feed cut out as Isaiah thought the spikes pierced through Yorra's stomach.

_What… What the fuck?_

"What happened to the feed?" Isaiah's heart pounded furiously in his chest, body trembling as he stared up at the blank screen. "What happened? What THE HELL HAPPENED?!"

"I-I don't know! The telecast is over, I-" Isaiah didn't wait for the bartender to finish, quickly running out of the bar and fishing out his phone.

"Isaiah, wait!" Isaiah barely processed that Alana was behind him, trailing at his side as worry laced her voice. "What are you going to do?"

"I have to get to the gym. I don't have a pokemon that can fly though so I have to get to a pokemon center!" Isaiah said, quickly looking for the closest one. "It's five minutes away-SHIT!" He kicked over a street trash can, hyperventilating as he tried to fish out one of the pokeballs from his belt. "I don't have anything fast enough to get me there! I-I don't-"

"Dragonite, come!" Isaiah snapped around to see the yellow dragon type take shape, Alana quickly grabbing his shoulders. "Take Dragonite to the gym! I'll get a taxi and meet you there!"

Isaiah took a moment to process what she did before quickly nodding. "Thank you. I owe you." He mumbled, quickly jogging over to Dragonite and mounting on its back.

"Be careful! You have no clue what's happening right now!" Alana warned. Isaiah could only give a brisk nod of assurance before urging the Dragonite on.

It wasn't long until Isaiah reached the gym, now more than ever was he thankful that Alana had tagged along with him that night. The moment they touched the ground, Isaiah hopped off its back and started to run. "Thank you! Wait here for Alana!"

He could hear it coo in concern, but he didn't have time to check on the Dragonite. People had been rushing out of the gym as he was entering, fear and horror coloring their faces.

"H-Hey! Did any of you see-" Isaiah tried to ask what happened to Yorra and Jules, but they were all too scared and pushed past him. He gnashed his teeth and pushed forward through the crowd.

Flashing red lights strobed through the halls as sirens wailed. The collateral damage from Maxima's rage was potent, spikes of earth sticking out in the ground even in the backstage area.

_What the fuck. What the FUCK!_

Isaiah quickly found the entrance to the gym he was looking for, barrelling through it with his shoulder and looking around. "Jules! Yorry!" He called out.

" **GROOOOOAGH~!"**

But his voice was soon drowned out by the tremoring roar of Maxima. Isaiah winced as his ears nearly split from the volume, but he merely clasped his hands over his ears and continued forward. "Jules! Yorr-"

As he rounded several spikes, Isaiah froze in place.

_No._

Didier was standing there, his Kamoo-o dragging its fists as it prepared to lunge at Maxima.

_Nonono…_

Jules stood shortly behind him, her right arm raised as her Megastone glimmered with life. Fluffers stood at her side, Mega-evolved and ready to battle.

_Nonono please, NO!  
_

And in her left arm was Yorra. Spikes pertruded from her gut, sticking through one side and out the other. Blood seeped from her body as the girl's arms hung limply at her sides.

" **YORRY!"**

Isaiah ran forward, tears streaming down his face as he ran to the two remaining pieces of family in his life.

"Isa? S-Shit, what are yo-" Isaiah paid no mind to what Jules was saying, stopping just behind her and heaving for air. His eyes were a haze as they pooled with tears, his trembling arms reaching out to Yorra.

"I shouldn't be surprised you're here. Good." Isaiah barely acknowledged Didier's passive voice, eyes still focused on Yorra. Jules turned to him slowly, offering Yorra to him with bated breaths. "Take that girl out while we handle this."

"Yorry… sh-she's…" Isaiah's words choked in his throat, slowly taking her in his arms as Jules handed her over.

"I'm sorry… I didn't think it would turn out like this…" Jules mumbled, her voice as quiet as a mouse. "I should have listened… I'm so sorry…"

Isaiah's chest felt like it was collapsing in on itself. He drew Yorra close, sinking to his knees as he cradled her still form in his arms. His eyes that once held back his sorrow released like a breaking dam, his voice coming out in sobs.

"No… no, please…" He hugged her upper half tight to his chest, moaning in anguish as he made no attempt to hold back his grief. "Please don't do this to me. Pleasepleaseplease. I'm sorry-I'm so sorry…" He rocked back and forth as he held her, as if hoping that might wake her up.

"I-Isa, please… y-you gotta take her out of here…"

"I'm sorry. I shoulda reconciled sooner-I'm so sorry…" He whispered between sobs, the world around him disappearing as he sat there with Yorra. It felt as if the last pieces of his family were once again falling apart.

Just like his mother.

Just like his sister.

And now Yorra.

"Please don't leave me, Pleasepleaseplease… I can't lose any more family… I can't handle it. Please don't leave me alone. I don't wanna be alone again!" He whimpered, his voice cracking with each word that uttered from his mouth. "Don't leave me, pleasepleaseplease… I can't…"

" **GROOOOOOAGH~!"**

The ferocious roar was the only sound that stirred Isaiah from his grief, causing him to draw his teary-eyed gaze up from Yorra.

"I-I know it's hard Isa, so please, you gotta listen to me!" Jules took his face in her hands, their red eyes meeting as she tried to rein in her own emotions. "Take her outta here! The sooner she gets away from Maxima, the sooner the thing will calm down!"

_Maxima._

_Maxima did this._

Isaiah's mind once filled with overwhelming grief went blank.

That blank canvas was then painted red with _rage._

Isaiah's eyes took Jules out of focus and dialed in on the behemoth raging behind her. Didier's pokemon continued to fight it back, but the beast seemed to take it all in stride. Even as a girder protruded from its chest, Maxima continued its ferocious march forward.

"... No."

Jules brow furrowed in confusion. "What?"

"No. No I'm not leaving." Isaiah picked his knees up off the ground, still cradling Yorra in his arms as the tears of grief turned into furious tears of blinding rage. His teeth grated hard enough in his mouth to make his gums bleed. His left hand fished for his pokeballs, and his megastone was already igniting with the fire that burned within.

"I'm not leaving until that thing is **FUCKING DEAD!"**

Isaiah tossed his pokeball forward, Luga's form materializing. As the megastone shined, Luga's form immediately shifted with it. The Swampert's eyes rolled back in its head like a shark on the scent of blood. It's Mega-evolved form bustled with its bulging muscles, its body looking almost twice the size Jules and Didier were used to seeing from it.

" **PEEEEERT~!"** Luga seemed to be fueled by the emotions of its master, letting out a deafening roar that matched Maxima's own.

"Luga! _Kill that fucking thing!"_

"I-Isa-wait!"

" **SWAAAAMPEEEERT~!"**

Jules' protests fell on deaf ears as Luga sailed forward and smashed its fist directly into Maxima's stomach. With enough force that it was lifted off its feet.

* * *

Isaiah woke with a start, eyes darting to survey his surroundings. He would have hopped from his seat if it wasn't for the weight of Jules' head on his shoulder.

**Beep...beep...beep…**

What he hoped was a nightmare soon became clear as a reality. He was sitting in the hospital room that Yorra had been placed in after her emergency surgery. By Arceus' grace, she had survived her impalement from the spikes and her guts were somehow not beyond repair. The doctors called it nothing short of a miracle that she survived. Still, they warned that she wasn't out of the woods just yet and still needed time to recover.

Now she laid out in the hospital bed in front of him, tubes sticking out of her mouth and hospital gown, supplying her with as much oxygen and blood as can be given. Isaiah and Jules had been waiting through the night, watching her like hawks.

Didier had left soon after things with Maxima had been finished. Alana had come as well, and she tried to stick around to be supportive, but Isaiah urged her to go home and rest. He made sure to express his gratitude for her help though as much as he possibly could. Now it was just Isaiah and Jules left, the two wearily watching over her unconscious form.

Isaiah yawned, running a hand slowly over his face as he tried to rub the tiredness from his eyes. He looked at Jules and slowly lifted her head from his shoulder, propping it up on the wall while using a pillow they were given to rest it back on. With Jules safely propped, Isaiah stood quietly from his seat, walking over to Yorra's bed.

He took a moment to look over her body, making sure there was nothing that might make her anymore uncomfortable as she lay there, hanging to life by a thread. The beep of her vitals monitor was the only thing that kept silence from enveloping the room. Isaiah eyed the ventilator, attempting to put his paranoia to rest. Each time it rose and fell, pumping air into Yorra's lungs, Isaiah felt his heartbeat steady.

"Look at you… people always thought you were small and frail but… here you are." Isaiah's voice came out as a quiet hush. His hand reached forward, take Yorra's comparatively small one in his palm. "Took some spikes to the stomach and still kickin'. That's some tough as nails shit to me."

He let a mirthless chuckle out, failing to reassure himself. "Well… I need you to keep toughing through this, okay? You've made it this far. Keep going."

Isaiah sucked in a breath, already feeling his fear overwhelm him as tears threatened to escape. He wiped his face on his forearm, trying to hold back. "You know, I… I never told you but… I really was grateful for that day at the bar. It was so long ago, but it… it feels like yesterday for me."

Isaiah paused, allowing his eyes to drift to her vital signs. The same rhythmic beat answered him, reminding Isaiah that she was still with him.

"I never knew how to say it before, but… thank you for taking that chance with me." He squeezed her hand affectionately, turning a teary eyed smile to look at her quiet face. "I… we were both alone at that time, isolated from everyone. But… I was at my lowest point when we met.."

Isaiah sank to one knee, keeping a gentle grip on her hand. "I was so alone. I had my pokemon, sure, but… they were the only things that kept me from being _completely_ alone. And at times… it didn't feel like enough. I hated going home every day to an empty house. To hear the echoes of my sister and mother fill those halls. To be lost in my own head… it was so painful."

Isaiah gave a genuine smile as tears trailed down his cheeks. "And then I met you. Some snarky emo girl with a mean streak." He chuckled quietly, wiping his face on his arm again. "When I first got you to hang out, I was just… desperate to feel like I wasn't alone anymore. I didn't think… I had no clue you'd become like family to me. But you did." He inhaled a deep breath, hoping to bring control back to his words.

"That time at the bar… spending all night playing darts and pool… That was one of the best days of my life. And I'll remember it for as long as I live." Isaiah's breath quivered as he tried to rein in his emotions. "Because… you saved me from the darkness that had consumed my life."

Isaiah sighed deeply, hanging his head. "But I couldn't do the same for you. I tried… but I failed. Please… please forgive me." Isaiah bit his bottom lip, watching her face, hoping with all his heart to see her stir. "Well, you don't have to forgive me. Just… just wake up and I'll be satisfied. That would be enough for me."

Isaiah clasped her small hand between both of his, dipping his head in prayer. "Wake up. Please… even if you hate me for what I've done… wake up. That's all I want. Even if you never forgive me for Maxima… make it through this and I'll be happy. I'll beg your forgiveness as long as I have to, just… just live. Please… Please…"

His pleas continued through the night, desperately clinging to her hand as he begged her to live. Ready to accept the consequences of his actions.

**To be continued…**


	6. Consequences

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Isaiah spends most of the next year helping Yorra recover from her injuries. Their relationship is seemingly back to normal, but may once again be put in jeapordy.

Consequences

***RIIIIING***

Yorra would have smashed her phone if it were within reach. But Isaiah had put it just far enough away that her immobility was too much. She peeled her eyelids back, staring at the ceiling in disdain as she was forced out of her restless slumber. The only saving grace of the morning was the now familiar smell of bacon and waffles that often permeated through the air.

"Rise and shine, Yorry. Time for breakfast!" Isaiah's voice echoed from behind her room's door. Something to note was that she wasn't in her apartment, rather a spare room in Isaiah's home that once belonged to someone dear to him.

"Can't I get room service?" She grumbled in reply, bringing her palms up to her eyes in an attempt to rub the tiredness away.

"No can do. You gotta get your morning routines in!" Isaiah opened the door, peering out from behind it. "Need me to help you into the chair or are you good?"

"If you're gonna make me get up, help me." Yorra sighed, teeth gritting as she slowly tried to sit up. The scar on her stomach ached, and her insides felt heavy as stones.

"Alright, alright. Take it easy." Isaiah pushed the door aside, grabbing a folded up wheelchair and releasing the lock. "Come on. Pull your legs out and I'll get you in."

Yorra didn't respond immediately, staring at the blanket covering her numb legs. _Pathetic._ Was the familiar thought that echoed in her mind. It wasn't the first time and it certainly wouldn't be the last.

"Come on, tough girl. You got this."

But Isaiah's encouragement was the small counter to those thoughts, her eyes trailing to him. That expectant smile waiting for her move urged her on, Yorra groaning as she numbly dragged her legs over the edge of her bed.

It was easier than the day before. Albeit barely, but she could feel the _smallest_ bit of control returning.

"There you go! You'll be walking in no time." Isaiah gingerly picked Yorra up by her armpits, carefully lifting her up and placing her in the chair. It took him several tries before to do so with minimal pain, but it seemed that he had found his safe spot, moving Yorra without any aggravated pain.

"I dunno. It's kinda nice being babied like this." Yorra scoffed, leaning back in her wheelchair. "You should just be my full time caretaker so I don't ever have to walk again."

"Shit, you'd have to pay me good money for that." Isaiah scoffed, rolling her out of the room and making their way to the living room. "Besides, I don't think your legs need anymore encouragement like that."

Isaiah's home was a comfy one story, three bedroom-two bathroom house. It was once a pokemon daycare in fact, formerly run by his mother. The outer fence and yard of the house was several times bigger than it was. The back had an entire concrete porch lined with couches and tables for guests to rest with their pokemon, as well as a large projector screen that came down from the awning, often used to entertain certain pokemon. The rest of the yard was a wide, sprawling grassy knoll with an artificial pond and rockface built at the edge for water pokemon to swim in. Though one could say it was big enough to be a pool for people as well.

"Calling a disabled girl fat? You're a monster, Sai." Yorra clicked her tongue, eliciting a laugh from him.

"Your legs aren't so useless that you can say 'disabled', girl." Isaiah stopped her in front of the table, a steaming plate of all the home made goodies she could want laid out on a porcelain plate. Two 6-inch waffles caked with butter and syrup, a side of golden scrambled eggs and crispy hash browns topped lightly with cheddar cheese. And of course, 4 pieces of bacon resting next to it.

The emotional and physical support Isaiah offered was always fantastic, but Yorra would be lying if she said that this breakfast wasn't the highlight of her day. Lunch and dinner were great too as Isaiah cooked a lot, but his breakfast meals were always something special.

"Thanks for the food…" She muttered, trying to mask the bit of drool that leaked at the edge of her mouth.

"Of course! Dig in." Isaiah moved around the table to take his seat, only hesitating when he looked through the glass doors leading to the back. "Hey, hey! You two! Go to sleep already!"

Yorra wasn't surprised when she looked up and saw Po and Mugen, her Bisharp, on the back porch watching whatever number episode of Dragonball it was. Po was laid out on his stomach, chin resting on his hands while Mugen was sprawled out on his back, getting comfy in his fur. Vicious, her Malamar, was there too but he was flat on the ground next to them, snoozing.

"Gro…" Po grunted in answer, trying not to look at Isaiah.

"Po, I know you heard me. Turn that off and go to sleep!" Isaiah clicked his tongue. Of course, the duo of pokemon nerds physically deflated, clearly not wanting to stop. Po even pouted, much to Yorra's amusement. "Don't give me that look! You two have been up since last night!"

Po and Mugen looked at each other, clearly not eager to move. "Gro..?" Po held up one finger.

"No, you're not watching one more. You're going to bed!"

"Gro!" Po persisted, sounding even more whiny as he did so. Mugen helped out by holding out her bladed arm, unable to hold a finger up but getting her point across.

"Oh my-no. No!"

"Gro!"

"No!"

"Gro, gro!" Again they both urged with their hands/blades.

Isaiah inhaled a deep breath and ran a hand over his face as the two continued to pout. "Alright, alright, _fine._ One more, then you both go to sleep. Got it?"

"Gro!" Both Mugen and Po brightened, high-fiving the other before un-pausing the anime.

Isaiah grumbled as he took his seat across from her, sticking to a more modest plate of an omelette with bacon and avocado on the side. "Weebs…"

"Those two have gotten on well." Yorra smirked, eyes still on their dorky duo.

"I thought they'd get along, but not that well." Isaiah shook his head in amusement, biting into his bacon.

"Guess they've really been infecting one another lately." Yorra chuckled, numbly reaching for her fork and knife as she picked at her waffles. "Did I tell you he got Mugen to watch like twenty Chan Lee movies last week?"

"Is that why they slept all day? I was so tired from work that I forgot to ask." Isaiah shook his head.

Yorra frowned, remembering him dragging his feet in that day and sprawling on the couch. "Sorry. I guess you've been swamped between taking care of me and handling your gym."

In the previous months since Isaiah started taking care of her, Yorra learned that he settled on the idea of starting an MMA gym during their time apart as a means of work. When asked about what happened to the fire-fighter goal, he merely shrugged and said that it wasn't for him.

"What are you apologizing for? It's not on you," he dismissed, biting into a thin slice of avocado. "It's just taken me some time to set up the right schedule for my gym. Now that I've got a few of Gabe's guys helpin', I actually don't have to go in as much. Four hours max."

"It's not like I'm alone here. Buttons and all the others are looking out for me, too." Yorra pointed out, masking her guilt and concern behind neutrality. "You don't have to be here all day."

"Geez, Yorry. If you don't want me around, just say so." Isaiah laughed, and thankfully she could tell he didn't actually think that. "Look, I just prefer to keep an eye on you myself. Not to be overbearing or anything, but uh… you know, it just puts me at ease."

Yorra didn't look up from her food, but she did feel some warmth from his tentativeness. Of course, she couldn't just let him see that. "If you say so… who's Gabe again?"

"Friend of mine. Met him a few months back. Cool guy, even if things started off shaky." Isaiah explained, drawing Yorra's gaze back up.

"Wait… you have friends aside from me and Jules?" She got the desired reaction, watching as he scoffed in offense.

"Excuse me, I have _plenty_ of friends aside from you two, thank you!"

"Oh yeah? Name five." Yorra kept a neutral expression as she shoveled a waffle piece into her mouth.

"Easy! First there's Gabe, then there's Alana!"

_From what it sounds like, she wants to be more than 'friends'._

"Someone else you met in the last few months…" Yorra not so subtly muttered before motioning with her fork. "Continue."

"Then there's… uh…" Isaiah looked to the side and she could see the small bit of perspiration on his brow. "Z-Zai, who's helping me out at the gym!"

"Isn't he one of Gabe's boys?" Yorra pointed out. "He and those other guys don't count."

"They count! I mean-I'm not super close with them, they're more Gabe's friends… but they count!" Isaiah defended.

"If you say so… Saiah-no-mates." Yorra smirked as she continued to eat.

Isaiah narrowed his eyes playfully at her before reaching over and snatching a piece of bacon and throwing it in his mouth.

"Hey!"

"That's what you get." Isaiah stuck his tongue out before continuing to eat. "Hurry up with your breakfast and we'll get started on your exercises."

Yorra grimaced, not looking forward to what they had to do soon after breakfast. Part of her wondered if the reason why breakfast was so good was to soften the blow. "Can't we skip today?"

"Nope. We gotta make sure your legs and back get to work or you won't recover nearly as fast." Isaiah shook his head. "You know we gotta do it."

"Yeah, yeah…" Yorra sighed, forking into another egg.

* * *

"Come on, you're almost there…" Isaiah encouraged, keeping Yorra just within arms reach as he trailed slowly at her side.

An impromptu handrail was set up in the large grassy backyard of Isaiah's house. Ever since Yorra could manage to somewhat move her legs, Isaiah was quick to get her mobile. It had been hard at first for him to watch, to see Yorra's face turn red and her legs swell up as she tried to fight through the pain. But he kept the consistency of their training up. He was always there and always encouraged her how he could.

And with time, her limited movement began to slowly increase. Progress was evident with each session, and Isaiah was proud to say that he was steadily able to stop helping Yorra walk between the rails. Now he was her personal trainer, cheering her on and walking every step with her.

"You're… one to talk…" Yorra smirked despite the sweat dripping down her face. "You look like you're… about to pass out."

At her lowest point, when Yorra was at her weakest, she described the pain as like walking with stones in her gut and throughout her legs. So, in order to walk a few steps in her shoes, Isaiah took to hauling a bag of stones on his back as well as iron weights on his legs. Yorra had called him nuts, but Isaiah was thankful to see his sentiment had gotten through.

So every day after breakfast and before dinner, the two would begin their routine of walking as far as they could muster.

"Yeah, right. I'm doin' just fine…" Isaiah laughed though with bated breath. "Though I'll admit… maybe shoulda skipped on the extra food."

"That's what you get for stealing my bacon…" Yorra snickered, keeping her breath level. As she reached the end of the rails, Yorra slowly lowered herself to the comfy grass and leaned her back against the railing. Seeing that she was done, Isaiah took one last step with his weights before dropping the bag on his back and sinking to the ground.

"Damn… am I gettin' outta shape?" Isaiah asked, breathing heavy as he sat up some feet away from Yorra. "I think I need to hit the bag more."

"I think… you're overworking yourself." Yorra shook her head, eyes half lidded. "You've been pushing to do everything lately. Try and relax a bit this week, will you?"

Isaiah took a moment to catch his breath before slowly nodding. "Yeah, maybe. I guess it's all finally come to a head…" he admitted, rolling his neck. "But I've found a good balance now, so I think it'll be okay."

"If you say so. You've already done enough, so… so don't push any harder, alright?" Yorra told him, frowning in concern.

"I won't, I won't. I promise…" Isaiah started to unfasten the weights around his legs, sighing in relief as he felt the weight release.

"Thank you." Yorra suddenly said, drawing Isaiah's gaze to her. She was staring at her legs, at first having trouble meeting his eyes.

"Of course, Yorry. You don't gotta-"

"I do. I really do." The severity in Yorra's tone silenced his dismissal, her eyes slowly trailing up and meeting his. "You… You never had to do _any_ of this. Especially after what I…" Yorra's eyes left his momentarily, going across the yard. Isaiah knew exactly where she was looking, pursing his lips as he followed her gaze.

Lizzie was curled up on the artificial rock surface by the pond at the edge of the yard. His Salazzle's eyes were open and wary as it stared at Yorra, an unreadable expression on her face. Lizzie had become one of the permanent house residents alongside his father's Arcanine Rocky, unfortunately serving as a grim reminder of Yorra's mistakes since her arrival.

It took Yorra a moment to draw her gaze away from Lizzie, turning to Isaiah with guilt. "After what I did. But you… you did it anyways. And I…" Isaiah's brow raised when he saw tears threaten at the edge of her eyes, Yorra inhaling a shaky breath. He quickly pulled himself over to sit closer, though she held a hand up to reassure him, using her other arm to wipe her face.

Isaiah's lips turned into a thin line, trying to put on a smile. "It's cool. Really. What you went through… I'd say you more than paid for what's happened."

"Even so… Thank you." Yorra smiled, looking up at him sincerely. "I didn't want anyone around, but… you made me stay here and work through all this pain. And it's all been worth it. So I just… I just want to say again that I'm sorry for what I did. And I'm really… really thankful for what you've done for me these past few months."

Isaiah let out a quiet chuckle, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "No problem, sis. I'm just… glad you made it through okay. Consider what happened with Lizzie square with me. As for Lizzie herself, well…" Isaiah looked up at his Salazzle, the pokemon having turned its back to them as it remained coiled on the ground. "We'll… we'll work on that as time goes on."

"Okay…" Yorra leaned into his chest, accepting the one resolution she could get. "Thanks, bro."

"Heh. That still sounds funny coming from you." Isaiah and Yorra shared a short laugh before he leaned over and kissed her on top of the head. Though he got a rather loud slap on the cheek for his troubles. "Ow! Hey!"

What was even worse was that when he looked down at her, Yorra's face contorted in such a way like she had just smelled a Trubbish.

She quickly shook it off, looking apologetic. "Sorry! Sorry! Force of habit…"

"I forgot about your no kissing rule, but damn! Did you have to slap me?" Isaiah laughed despite holding his cheek. "I even kissed you on the head! That's as platonic as it gets." Isaiah grabbed the rails and pulled himself to his feet before offering her a hand up. She took it, allowing him to hoist her up.

"It's just a habit. I'll try to suppress it. Though maybe don't kiss me much from now on either." Yorra smirked, the two slowly limping back to the house.

"I'll keep that in mind." Isaiah chuckled, shaking his head. "Anyway, I'm proud of the progress you're making! You'll be walking all on your own in no time."

"I don't know about no time, but… it's nice to see I'm getting there." Yorra nodded as they approached the house. Buttons was waiting expectantly with Luga, the two watching something on the projector. Yorra raised a brow, nudging him. "Look at that. Good to see they're back to being friends. What was going on with Luga anyway?"

Isaiah hesitated, eyes on Luga as he and Buttons sat comfortably next to one another. It hadn't been that way for the past few months, and Yorra clearly hadn't failed to notice. Luga had been somewhat distant from Yorra's Pokemon, especially Buttons.

Isaiah had a good guess as to why.

* * *

" _You shouldn't tell her."_

_Isaiah pursed his lips, looking up at Alana silently. It had been a week since the incident with Maxima, and Yorra had made it through. She had been in and out of sleep, but it was clear she was going to make it. The doctors proclaimed it a miracle, and Isaiah couldn't argue the point. Though part of him wondered just if Will Jagger had something to do with it, his most recent visit seemingly being the turning point in her condition. Not that he had any idea of how he could, though._

" _What? You want him to lie?" Jules eyes flared in alarm._

" _I'm not telling him to lie, I'm saying that there's no point in telling her every little detail." Alana explained, raising her hands in surrender. "I mean, what good will it do? Just pile on another thing to all the shit she's going through?"_

" _I'm not sayin' he should tell her now, but… this isn't somethin' you just hide from people. Especially when it has to do with their Pokemon!" Jules argued, looking at Isaiah. "She'll understand, Isa. If you're honest-"_

" _You really think so?" Isaiah cut her off, eyes hardening. "Because I know for a fact that despite all the shit that crazy thing did, Yorry loved Maxima. She loves all her Pokemon. And if she finds out what part I played, she…" Isaiah sighed, shaking his head. "I don't know if she'll ever forgive me."_

_Silence was his answer, Alana and Jules having no words of reassurance for him. Isaiah massaged the bridge of his nose, trying to make a final decision._

" _Sai… You're planning to help her out once she leaves the hospital, right?" Alana drew his gaze to her, the Dazzling Queen's eyes shining with sympathy. "I think that should be your priority then. Don't rush to tell her anything she doesn't need to know. Take care of her and… hopefully, when you are ready, she'll be able to understand."_

" _... Yeah. Maybe that's the best call." Jules sighed, rubbing her arm. "I don't like keepin' quiet about this kinda stuff, but… I get it."_

_Isaiah looked between the girls and took a deep breath before slowly nodding his head._

" _Yeah. Maybe that's best."_

* * *

"I… think he felt bad for how things shook out." Isaiah played it off the best he could, putting on a smile. "But hey, at least it's cool now."

"Yeah… that's good." Yorra nodded. "Buttons missed him. I could tell." She rubbed Buttons head as she and Isaiah passed him before gently being set down on the couch closest to him. Buttons drew himself a bit closer to her, his back touching her legs as he kept his eyes on the screen.

"Well, it certainly has been lively having your whole team out with mine. I was afraid they wouldn't all get along, but they've gotten pretty cozy together." Isaiah sat on the couch next to her, Luga walking up and laying at his feet.

"I might have to rent out the room eventually. It's nice having a big open place for them to hang out all the time." Yorra joked, leaning back into the cushions as she mindlessly watched what their primary partners had been watching. Finding Nemo, oddly enough.

"Well, I certainly wouldn't…" Isaiah trailed off, eyes flaring as he saw Lizzie round the corner of the couch, limping her way toward Yorra. "Hey, Lizzie. Stop."

Yorra widened her eyes, watching as the poisonous-fire type approached. She expected Buttons to get between them, but oddly enough the Incineroar only watched Lizzie as she approached, not moving a muscle.

Isaiah moved to get up, but Luga put his hand on his knee, shaking its head. He furrowed his brow, looking up as Lizzie came to a stop in front of Yorra. She stared back into Lizzie's calm orbs, her throat drying up as she wondered what she would do.

No one had moved or made a sound, Lizzie and Yorra's gazes remained locked, and for a moment Yorra felt she might accept whatever punishment the reptilian Pokemon had in store. But before that, she let several words slip out:

"I'm sorry, Lizzie." Yorra swallowed, finding her voice. "You… you didn't deserve what.. What Maxima did. What _I_ did. You don't have to forgive me, but… I am sorry."

Lizzie's sharp purple and black eyes continued to stare into hers. Yorra held her breath, unsure if her words would be enough for the Salazzle. The tension was nearly choking the life left in her as she awaited any sort of response.

But when Yorra began to fear the worst, Lizzie suddenly yawned. She drew her gaze away from Yorra only to start curling up at her feet, her back touching the dark trainer's legs. And like that, the long held grudge that had radiated from Lizzie for the past several months vanished into thin air.

Yorra stared down at Lizzie's prone body, her breath shaky as she felt tears threaten at the edge of her eyes. Isaiah inhaled, having also been unwittingly holding his breath. He smiled, reaching over and massaging Yorra's shoulder in reassurance. She reached up and gripped his hand, allowing her emotions to overwhelm her and the tears drop like rain from her eyes.

* * *

_Several months later…_

Yorra's recovery had gone smoothly. With Isaiah's day to day help, she was back to walking on two feet in six month's time. The day before she had walked a couple miles alongside Isaiah without issue. Today, she was jogging alongside him around the block. She was gasping and wheezing slightly, but this was more of an issue with her stamina than her legs.

"Almost there, keep going." Isaiah encouraged, keeping pace next to her as they jogged.

"You said that… five minutes ago…" Yorra grunted as she sounded on the verge of passing out, chest heaving for breath.

"We've barely been out here for twenty minutes." Isaiah laughed as they rounded the street corner. Yorra was immensely relieved when she saw his house just ahead, the two slowing to a stop as they reached the front gate.

"Thank Arceus…" Yorra collapsed onto the front lawn grass, hunched over in desperately gasping for air.

"You alright there?" Isaiah laughed, squatting next to her.

"Fuck you…" She mumbled, slowly drawing her eyes up to look at him. "I just… started walking fine… yesterday…"

"And now you've jogged around. You look like you're ready to move around and kick some ass to me." Isaiah nudged her shoulder, watching her delayed attempt to bat his hand away with some amusement.

"It doesn't feel like it…" Yorra rolled onto her butt, but smiled at him. "On a serious note though… thanks. I feel like this coulda… taken a lot longer."

"I didn't do much except play cheerleader. It was all you." Isaiah waved his hand, only for her to blow a raspberry.

"Stop playing the humble bull, will you?" She rolled her eyes. "I owe you a lot… really."

Isaiah struggled to smile, but forced one on. "Hey. That's what family's for. Seein' you back on your feet and movin'... that's worth every second we spent gettin' you in shape."

Yorra smiled, giving a short nod as she rubbed her nose. "Right… well, enough of the sentimental stuff, huh? Time to plan my little return to battling."

"Already? You gonna head back to your gym?" Isaiah cocked a brow in wonder.

"Nope. I've got business in La Sapphira first." Yorra's expression darkened as her eyes filled with a silent rage.

Isaiah frowned, jaw clenching as he easily guessed the reason. "You're gonna go see Didier."

"Not so much to _see_ , more so to kick the shit out of him and his team." Yorra spat, pushing off her knees to stand up, Isaiah shortly following suit.

"Because of Maxima…"

"That's right. I… I know I lost control of her, don't get me wrong…" Yorra's gaze drifted to her right hand, which trembled in front of her. Her lips quivered as rage shook her completely. "But you know that he could have taken Maxima down without killing her. And he thinks he can get off scot-free without paying the price? Maxima was _my_ pokemon." Yorra scoffed, looking at Isaiah with a look that could paralyze most men with its fury.

"And he's going to learn why _I'm_ the gatekeeper to the Elite 4 and not him."

Isaiah swallowed a lump in his throat, feeling his hair stand up on end from the statement alone. He wasn't easily intimidated, ask anyone. But the pure rage that burned like a roaring flame in Yorra's eyes felt like they might consume him like a pyre.

A rage built by the loss of Maxima. Who he had a part in putting down.

Yorra's bubbling rage soon evaporated, replaced by a more sardonic expression. "Well, that can wait 'til tomorrow. I want to spend today getting ready with my team before we go out, then I'll take a Poke Ride over."

"Right." Isaiah nodded, watching as Yorra walked past him, biting his lip.

"You gonna come? It'll be a helluva show, I'm sure." Yorra asked as she looked back at him, a malicious smirk on her lips.

As much as Isaiah would have liked to avoid it, he wasn't sure what Didier would do or say. Jules gave her reassurance that DIdier would keep quiet, but Isaiah wasn't sure how much he trusted what he might tell his sister.

"Sure, I'll go."

"Cool! Should make for an exciting first outing." Yorra smiled before heading inside. Isaiah watched her back for a long moment, the pit in his stomach continuing to burrow deeper.

* * *

Exciting wasn't wrong. Yorra had come at Didier in full force.

Isaiah had been tense the entire day leading up to the battle, but the pure sensation of the battle between the two final Gym Leaders of Zirca was a spectacle to behold. Even without her previous ace Maxima, Yorra had given Didier a run for his money. Even as her team began to dwindle, it seemed that Yorra's rage had also fueled the fire in her team. None of them went down without a fight, and often took their opponent with them.

Now it was down to Meyneth, Didier's Garchomp, and Buttons.

"Earthquake Meyneth!" Didier ordered, sweat perspiration from his skin and blood trickling down the edge of his mouth. Yorra had made the battle rough and tough for both of them, each contender having their fair share of cuts and bruises by now.

"Buttons, get skyward!" Yorra ordered Button, who narrowly avoided the shaking terrain as he leaped into the air.

"Don't let him recover, Meyneth! Dragon Claw!" Didier snarled in frustration. His oversized Garchomp soared through the air like a bullet, its fins and talons illuminating as it made to slash him down.

"Catch her, Buttons!" Isaiah raised a brow at the unusual tactic, watching as the Incineroar reached out and caught Meyneth by the appendages on her head. She growled, attempting to bite him before digging into his sides with Dragon Claw. Buttons grit his teeth and took the pain though, digging his claws into her head.

"Now, Vital Throw that bitch into the ground!" Yorra gave the order.

"Meyneth, break out of it!" But it was too late. Buttons had too good of a hold on her head, twisting his body in air and dragging her along with it. With a furious spin, he sent Meyneth rocketing toward the ground. The artificial dirt and rock blistered upon impact, dust kicking up as Meyneth laid inside a crater. Buttons landed on the ground several meters away from her, fire exhausting from his mouth as he breathed.

"Meyneth! Get up!" Didier called out, and Isaiah could see it. His hands were twitching toward his mega-stone. Isaiah was well aware of his strange hard-on for Megas, and to consider that in the face of Yorra's wrath was telling.

 _He's actually considering it._ Isaiah's gaze drifted to Yorra, the determined dark-type gym leader grinning almost sadistically.

"Come on, Didier. Go ahead. _Do it._ " Yorra didn't miss his perturbed expression clearly, goading him on. "You'll lose if you don't, right? Fucking _do it._ "

"You little shit…" Didier's hands shook at his side, but he didn't bite her bait. "Get up, Meyneth! We can finish her off without it, right?"

Meyneth growled low as it rose from the crater, eyes locked on Buttons as she seethed with frustration. Buttons spat out a wad of blood and grinned, flicking its nose with its thumb tauntingly.

"Buttons, put this bitch in the ground. Darkest Lariat!" Yorra ordered, Buttons dashing forward as he swung his arms around like a helicopter blade as fire surrounded his body.

"Meyneth! Dragon Claw!" Meyneth flew forward, fins and talons once again igniting as it moved. The two clashed in a glorious burst of fire and draconic energy. Yorra, Didier and Isaiah had to briefly shield their eyes from the blast. As the light died down and the dust settled, the three trainers lowered their arms to determine the winner.

At the center of the ring, Meyneth and Buttons both stood there, a claw in one another's face. They were both still as statues and for a moment, it looked like it might continue. But then they both collapsed to the ground, swirls in their eyes as they fell unconscious.

"Both Pokemon are unable to continue! This match is declared a draw!" The official raised both flags, but neither side looked satisfied with the result.

"Fuck you, Didier! You're lucky my team wasn't at full strength!" Yorra cursed, glaring daggers at the single Jagger son.

"Save your breath. Take your damn Incineroar and get the hell out of my gym." Didier snapped, wiping blood and sweat off his forehead.

"You're scum! Scum for what you did to Maxima!" Yorra snapped, jaw clenching as she jumped over the rails and ran to Buttons. Isaiah took this as his queue to get down on the stadium floor, making sure that things didn't escalate any further between them.

"If you're looking for an apology regarding your Tyranitar, tough shit kid. I did my duty as a gym leader. I saved your ass." DIdier scoffed, brushing off her insults.

"So I should see you as some kind of hero, Didier? No. All I see is a Pokemon murderer desperately trying to claw his way out of daddy's shadow." Yorra retorted, her words digging deep enough to make Didier flinch, hands clenching at his side. "You might have been booted from the E4's ranks… but you were perfect fucking fit with those monsters all along."

Each word meant for Didier stabbed into Isaiah. He spared a knowing look with the dragon-type gym leader, who looked more than tempted to blabber on. But by some miracle, or perhaps pride, Didier turned his back to them both after recalling Meyneth to her poke ball.

"Ramble all you want, brat. Get the hell out of my gym. Tell the officials you can _have_ the eighth spot in the circuit." Didier looked back over his shoulder, eyes narrowed. "I'll come and take from you when I please."

"And I'll be waiting to fuck you up the next time you try." Yorra snarled, recalling Buttons to his poke ball. She spared a look at Isaiah and tugged on his hoodie sleeve. "Come on. Let's get the hell out of here. I'm tired of the stink."

"Yeah…" Isaiah mumbled, trailing after her.

"Can you believe that prick?" Yorra's feet stomped the ground beneath her with every step, her body radiating frustration as they made their way to the exit. "Acting like he did me a fucking favor."

"That's Didier for you." Isaiah answered with half energy, hands tucking into his pockets as he stayed just behind her.

_I have to tell her._

"Fuck him and his daddy issues. Pretentious dick…" Yorra snapped again as they reached the outside courtyard. "I hope he's stuck at this gym for the rest of his fucking life licking daddy's boots!"

"Yorry…"

"You know he let you win, right? Just so he could fuck with us." Yorra turned around briefly.

"I know. I'm plannin' to come back eventually and battle him for real sometime, but-listen, Yorry-"

"Good. I hope you kick his shit in when you do." Yorra turned back around, heels clacking as she continued forward aimlessly. "I'm not saying that excuses what I did, but-It wouldn't have happened that way at least!"

"It's fine, Yorry. But listen…"

"I'm gonna find a new fill in and come back here myself and beat that pokemon murdering sonofa-"

"I helped kill Maxima, Yorry."

Isaiah pressed his lips tightly together as her footfall came to a halt. He couldn't look her in the eye right away, gaze leveled at her feet. But he could feel her eyes on him. The silence was deafening, and the breeze pressing against them was no comfort.

"What..?"

Isaiah took a deep breath, trying to mentally prepare himself. He drew his eyes up to meet hers, and immediately felt his heart crack. The look of betrayal and confusion in her expression said it all. Her jaw hung loose as she silently awaited his next words.

"I… I didn't… I didn't first see you at the hospital." Isaiah admitted, swallowing the spit that built up in his mouth. "I arrived at the gym after you… after you got hurt."

Yorra stared at him for what felt like ages, her eyes wide in disbelief and horror. Isaiah waited for something, anything from her, not sure what else he could say. Finally, her lip quivered and Yorra found her voice and said;

"Why..?"

Isaiah didn't know exactly how to answer that, unclenching his jaw. "Why what?"

"Why… why, why-why would you do that..?" Yorra asked, taking a step closer as her hands trembled at her sides. "W-Was it because of Lizzie?"

Isaiah's brow furrowed, looking back up at her in wonder. "What? No, it had nothing to do with Lizzie."

"Really? Nothing at all?" Yorra's voice cracked and the gravest chuckle escaped her lips. "Because I know you hated Maxima after what she did, but-"

"I said it had **nothing** to do with Lizzie!" Isaiah was louder than he intended, causing Yorra to recoil. "It had everything to do with you!"

Yorra's eyes were miles away, staring at him in complete bafflement. "Me? Because… Because of what I did?"

Isaiah's brow hardened, realizing that Yorra was only barely hearing him. She was lost in the vortex of her mind, and he had to pull her out. He reached forward, gently but firmly gripping her shoulders.

"Yorry! It had **nothing** to do with what happened with Lizzie! Okay?! I did it because when I got there, you…" Isaiah choked on his words, the memory still haunting him. He felt tears well up as he recalled how he felt in that moment. He slowly let go of her shoulders, hands shaking as they fell to his sides.

"You were almost _dead,_ Yorry. I thought Maxima had killed you." His voice came out in a sob, tears streaming down his face as spoke. Yorra's eyes focused back on him, his words finally sinking in. Though none of the pain she felt seemed to leave. "When I got there, Jules was cradling you in her arms… and you had spikes stickin' out of your gut. I thought you were dead."

He sniffled, wiping his eyes on his arms as he grit his teeth. "And all I could see was Maxima. That…" he almost called it a _thing_ , but stopped himself. For Yorra. "... She had done that to you. And I… I lost it. And I had Luga beat her down."

Silence returned as Yorra continued to process what she was hearing. Isaiah remained locked in her gaze, unable to pull his eyes away despite wanting nothing else.

"... Were you the one who killed her?"

Isaiah pressed his eyelids together and shook his head. "No. No, that was… that was still Didier." He said truthfully, opening his eyes back up. "But I… I can't say I didn't have a hand in what went down."

Despite his answer, Yorra seemed no more reassured, on the apparent verge of bursting. "So… is that what this past year was? Making up for Maxima?"

Isaiah's brow hardened, and part of him was hurt by the implication. "You really think I wouldn't have been there for you? **Regardless** of what I did?"

Yorra stared back into his eyes, the answer in them further breaking his heart. "I don't know… I really don't, because… because I never would have thought… would have guessed you had a part in what happened."

"Come on, Yorry. When have I not had your back?" Isaiah asked, his voice almost desperate to remind her.

Yorra pursed her lips, hunching over and hugging her stomach. "I don't know… I don't know but I…" Yorra let out a wail of agony, crouching down. "Arceus… What's wrong with you?! Why-why couldn't you… Why couldn't you just keep it to your fucking self?!"

Isaiah was taken back by her question, struggling to process her words. Yorra looked back up at him, desperation in her eyes.

"Why couldn't you just keep lying?! Why did you have to tell me?! We were back to friends again-back to being fucking **family**! Why did you tell me?!" She asked over and over, almost beginning to hyperventilate.

Isaiah stared down at her for a long moment, searching for the answer himself. "If… if you had found out through someone else… through Didier or Jules or… or whoever. Would you be able to forgive me?" Yorra momentarily paused in her horror, eyes trailing away from him. "I wanted to be the one to tell you. To be honest so that… that we would have a chance. I didn't want this hanging overhead for the rest of our lives."

"Then why wait..?" Yorra asked, eyes red as she drew them back up to Isaiah. "Why not tell me at all these past six months?"

"Why do you think? Because you wouldn't accept my help if I told you." Isaiah said honestly, shaking his head as he knelt in front of her. "I needed to be there for you first and foremost. Taking care of you was more important, and I wasn't about to add anything to that weight on you."

Yorra looked conflicted, among many other things that were going through her mind. She kept a tight lock on her stomach, as if the scar was aching. Isaiah sucked in a breath, slowly reaching out. "Yorry, I-"

" **Don't."** Isaiah recoiled his hand, Yorra's eyes once again meeting his. He saw a flash of that same rage that she held toward Didier flare up. But this time it was directed at him. And it was the final crack that completely shattered his heart to bits. His hand dropped at his side, and he looked away, shame and pain now filling him.

"I… I'm sorry, Sai, I…" Isaiah couldn't bear to look at her, but could hear the conflict in her voice. "What happened to Maxima… It's probably what I deserved after everything I've done. To you and so many others. But… But after everything, you know I… I still loved her."

Isaiah stiffly nodded. "I know."

"Then… then you know I can't just…" Isaiah squeezed his eyelids shut as he clutched his hand over his mouth, knowing full well what was coming.

"I can't just… forgive and forget. Not this. "

"I know." he whispered out, opening his eyes and daring to look back at her. "But… But please know I… I am sorry how things turned out. If I could, I… I would change things, but I can't…"

"I know. But I need time…" Yorra slowly rose to stand, turning her back to him. "I… I need space. So just… give me some for a while."

Isaiah didn't answer, slowly rising up after her and watching her back. Even as she waited for him to speak, he couldn't muster up a word. Nothing in his quick and careful wit came to mind. Nothing that could repair the damage that had been done. And he was left speechless.

And realizing he had nothing more to say, Yorra walked on without him. And Isaiah already began to feel the claws of isolation sink into his soul.

**To be continued…**

**Author's Note:**

> So this is different than what I'm used to writing. Most if not all my fanfics are based on a certain series and most usually don't involve OC's. But I stumbled upon NYANTCHA's character Yorra and loved her design. She was also given a bit more depth than just being the girl who eats men alive, and reminded me of a kind of character I had thought up once before.
> 
> So, in admiration for NYANTCHA's OC, I decided to write a little fanfic based on her and an OC of my own! It was honestly a lot of fun writing them together, and this ended up being way longer than I ever intended XD I do hope you all enjoy this one-shot, sorry if some people were expecting it to go in a certain direction (lemons) considering Yorra's origin.
> 
> Anyways, I hope you all enjoy, especially you NYANTCHA! Make sure to support them over on Twitter and give them a follow :)


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